Maritime international trade and bioinvasions: A three‐year long survey of small mammals in Autonomous Port of Cotonou, Benin

• Published in: Journal of Applied Ecology
• Main Authors: Badou, Sylvestre, Missihoun, Antoine, A., Agbangla, Clément, Gauthier, Philippe, Houéménou, Gualbert, Dossou, Henri‐Joël, Etougbétché, Jonas, Adamjy, Tasnime, Tchabi, Arlette, Faton, Laurent, Hima, Karmadine, Evenamia, Camille, Diagne, Christophe, Besnard, Aurélien, Dalecky, Ambroise, Dobigny, Gauthier
• Other Authors: Ecole Polytechnique d'Abomey Calavi (EPAC), Université d’Abomey-Calavi = University of Abomey Calavi (UAC), Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations (UMR CBGP), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD France-Sud )-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro Montpellier, Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Université de Montpellier (UM), Port Autonome de Cotonou, Abdou Moumouni University of Niamey = Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey (UAM), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD France-Sud )-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro Montpellier, Laboratoire Population-Environnement-Développement (LPED), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU), BIOPASS, Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar Sénégal (UCAD), Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP), Sylvestre Badou was granted a Doctoral Research Fellowship (ARTS) by IRD (2019–2022). IRD funded the study, partly through its supportive grants to the young associated research group ‘Biological Invasions in West Africa’ (JEAI IBAO) as well the ‘Micromammals as Proxies for Environmental Changes’ observatory initiative (Obs-MICE). This work is part of the PASPort/PPSE project funded by APC, IRD and ENABEL.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2023
• Subjects: [SDV.GEN.GPO]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Genetics/Populations and Evolution [q-bio.PE]; Rattus rattus
• Online Access: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-04369169; https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-04369169/document; https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-04369169/file/Journal%20of%20Applied%20Ecology%20-%202023%20-%20Badou%20-%20Maritime%20international%20trade%20and%20bioinvasions%20A%20three%E2%80%90year%20long%20survey%20of.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.14557

International audience 1. International trade has been favouring the dissemination of a wide suite of invasive alien species. Upstream prevention through the monitoring of entry points is identified as an appropriate strategy to achieve control of bioinvasions and their consequences. Maritime transportation has been responsible for the introduction worldwide of exotic rodents that are major pests for crops and food stocks as well as reservoirs of many zoonotic pathogens. In order to limit further dissemination, the International Health Regulation constrains decisions makers and socio-economic stakeholders to manage ship-mediated import/export of rodents within seaports.2. Unfortunately, eco-evolutionary insights into rodent introduction events that could guide preventive actions in seaports are very scarce. In order to bridge this gap, we here describe the results of a 3 year-long survey of small mammals conducted in the Port of Cotonou, Benin.3. Our aim was to assess the spatiotemporal distribution, diversity and relative abundance of invasive and native rodents.4. 960 small mammal individuals were captured in nine within-seaport sites. We found (i) a marked predominance of invasive species (84% of the individuals belonging to Mus musculus, Rattus rattus, R. norvegicus), (ii) with native species (i.e. Mastomys natalensis and the shrew Crocidura olivieri) essentially restricted to peripheral non-industrial areas, as well as (iii) a fine-scale spatial segregation stable over time between the invasive Norway rats and house mice on the one hand, and the black rats and shrews on the other hand.5. Furthermore, trapping before and after two successive rodent control campaigns indicates that they were ineffective and that subsequent rodent recolonisation occurred 6–12 months following intervention.6. Synthesis and applications. Our results are discussed in terms of ecological processes at play (e.g. interspecific interactions) and operational recommendations (e.g. assessment of proper eradication units, environmental ...