Declaring biological warfare against the zebra mussel seems like the only way out. Ending in open waters in Spain one of the world’s most harmful invasive alien species due to its environmental and economic impact. however, its implementation requires more investment and research. To adapt it to the country.
They have been successfully implementing a system in the United States for years. Developed more than a decade ago by scientists at the New York Museum genetically modified pseudomonas bacteria To produce a toxin that specifically attacks the genus Dreissena.
For this reason, “release” into open water kills specimens of this species without affecting other animals or plants. Concha Durán, head of the Júcar Hydrographic Confederation Technical Service and an expert on this invader, explained to Efe that they share the same habitat.
The problem is that this bacteria enters the water in powder form, and it will take enough product to kill a mussel in a reservoir, producing levels of sediment that can scare old reservoirs and make it impossible to apply. He regretted it in Spain.
Available in eight of Spain’s 15 river basin regions
Zebra mussel, which causes serious environmental damage by forming large clusters in the ecosystems it is planted and the infrastructures it clings to, It is located in eight of the fifteen river basin districts in Spain and has colonized more than sixty reservoirs.
Specifically, in the Ebro (first border with Spain in 2001), Guadalquivir, Andalusian Mediterranean Basins; Guadalete and Barbate; Red, Odiel and Stones; Júcar, Catalonia’s River Basin Region and Segura (last appearance of adult species in 2022).
Moreover, New look in PortugalDurán recalled that there was a country where we “shared two basins.”
In Spain, for now, the borders of Miño-Sil, Galician Coast, East Cantabrian, West Cantabrian, Duero, Tajo, Guadiana, namely the “silicone” part of Spain, were saved.
In some of the latter, larvae were found, but never adult specimens, indicating that they did not meet the necessary conditions for the survival of the species, while in “calcareous” Spain it settles precisely because of the fact that calcium carbonate is required to form its shell.
so it disperses
Major dispersal vectors of this species include fishing, navigation, and water transfers or transfers. Explaining that although there are physical, chemical, biological or mechanical methods to prevent its entry and spread in closed facilities, they cannot be applied in open waters as they will “kill” all living things, and added:
For example, water treatment plants often create hyperchloride at the start of treatment, while other plants use the cold months for water transfer because zebra mussel larvae need higher temperatures to survive.
According to the expert, there is only one case in the world where the complete eradication of zebra mussels in open waters was achieved through “chemical warfare”.
Durán said, “It was in Darwin Bay, Australia. After finding the zebra mussel, they declared it a national disaster, shut it down for 40 days and treated it with hypochlorite. Everything died.” they recolonized as their opening to the ocean made possible.
More than two breeding cycles in Spain
“Honestly, in the case of Spain, I don’t think it can be destroyed without the biological pathway being developed”something that has been slowed down for “technical reasons” and a lack of research for now.
In the United States the technique has been successfully tested in certain situations, particularly in breakwaters, but the goal would be to be able to “clean” the reservoirs completely.
“I trust science. Unless research advances in other areas, biological warfare is the only option right now. It’s the technique I’m most hopeful for, as it’s the most nature-like technique.”
Durán also advocated learning more about how the zebra mussel lives here, as they have documented two breeding cycles elsewhere, while they observe that it has more breeding cycles in Spain, possibly due to higher water temperatures.
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