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Impact of Biological Invasions on Ecosystem Services pp 221–234Cite as

Impact of Invasions on Water Quality in Marine and Freshwater Environments

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Part of the book series: Invading Nature - Springer Series in Invasion Ecology ((INNA,volume 12))

Abstract

Water quality of marine and freshwater environments, including brackish waters, can be highly impacted by the introduction, establishment, and spread of non-native species. Phytoplankton are among the most common arrivals, with the bloom-forming species, such as toxic freshwater cyanobacteria and marine dinoflagellates, being of particular concern. Their massive population increase may lead to water discolouration, reduced transparency, changes in nutrients cycling, events of anoxia, and release of potent toxins contaminating the food web and drinking water. Top-down control that regulates primary productivity is carried out by filter-feeding organisms. Bivalve mollusks are often the dominant filter feeders in many aquatic systems. The high filtration rates of some non-native bivalves may significantly increase the ecosystem filtration capacity, resulting in drastic changes of phytoplankton biomass and composition. Invasive bivalves also have a marked role removing other suspended particles, which result in increasing water clarity with subsequent growth of submerged vegetation. This apparent benefit may not be innocuous because changes in phytoplankton composition may lead to dominance of toxic algae species. Biomagnification of contaminants filtered from the water column, biofouling, and increase of sedimentation are among other detrimental effects associated with the increase of non-native bivalve populations. In this chapter, the main impacts on water quality raised by non-native phytoplankton and bivalve species are reviewed.

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Acknowledgments

P.R.C. was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the FCT Investigator Program (IF/00271/2013). J.C.M. was supported by a postdoctoral fellowship from FCT (SFRH/BPD/72811/2010). P.C. was supported by project PEst-OE/MAR/UI0199/2014

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IPMA – Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere/CCMAR—Centre for Marine Sciences, Avenida de Brasília s/n, 1449006, Lisbon, Portugal

    Pedro Reis Costa

  2. CIIMAR/CIMAR—Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Terminal de Cruzeiros do Porto de Leixões, Av. General Norton de Matos, s/n, 4450-208, Porto, Portugal

    José Carlos Martins

  3. MARE-FCUL—Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, 1749-016, Lisbon, Portugal

    Paula Chainho

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  1. Pedro Reis Costa
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  2. José Carlos Martins
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  3. Paula Chainho
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Correspondence to Pedro Reis Costa .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain

    Montserrat Vilà

  2. The Bio-Protection Research Centre, Lincoln University, Lincoln, Canterbury, New Zealand

    Philip E. Hulme

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Costa, P.R., Martins, J.C., Chainho, P. (2017). Impact of Invasions on Water Quality in Marine and Freshwater Environments. In: Vilà, M., Hulme, P. (eds) Impact of Biological Invasions on Ecosystem Services. Invading Nature - Springer Series in Invasion Ecology, vol 12. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-45121-3_14

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