In the tasks of monitoring the arrival of species introduced to the seabed of the Catalan coasts carried out by the Catalan Water Agency (ACA) in collaboration with the Center for Advanced Studies in Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), a new introduced algae has been detected for the first time in Catalonia and on the Spanish coasts at Punta Falconera, in the nature reserve of Cap de Creus, in the municipality of Roses.
The species in question is called Chrysonephos lewisii and is native to the Western Atlantic and the Caribbean. It is a Pelagophyceae , which is a class of very rare algae. This alga was already reported in certain places in the Mediterranean, in particular in Italy and the island of Corsica, but it had never been found in the Iberian Peninsula or the Balearic Islands.
The ACA has been developing measures and actions for years following the entry of invasive species into the seabed of Catalonia, and also in continental waters. In the case of the marine waters of the Catalan coast, these measures correspond to the implementation of monitoring and control programs with the support of teams of specialists with the aim of identifying the introduced benthic species, and periodically evaluating the index of biopollution by invasive species in coastal water bodies. Specifically, this year 2022, the ACA has awarded a new contract to the CEAB-CSIC with which, among other works, the identification and location of invasive species will be carried out in a minimum of 74 areas of the coast of Catalonia during a period three years old Other outstanding results of the invasive species monitoring programs of the ACA carried out by the CEAB-CSIC in previous years have been the qualification of the state of coastal water bodies in relation to introduced species, the dispersion of relatively recently introduced species such as Caulerpa cylindracea or Womersleyella setacea, and monitoring the colonization and evolution of these species at specific points on the Catalan coast.
Actions against invasive species
