Stiftelsen Oscar och Lili Lamms Minne
Du är här: Hem // 2017 
TitelEarly detection of harmful invasive aquatic microorganisms
NoDO2017-0053
UniversitetSveriges Lantbruksuniversitet
InstitutionInstitutionen för vatten och miljö
HuvudsökandeStina Drakare
Beviljat belopp2 000 000
Sammanfattning
Invasive species contribute heavily to global ecosystem changes. Increased global transport of humans and goods combined with global warming is a powerful force in spreading organisms to non-native ecosystems and inducing geographic range shifts in species distributions. Management actions against invasive species are most effective during early stages of invasion, demanding that early-warning systems are in place. Early detection is, however, difficult when the invader is microscopic. We thus run the risk of overlooking “invisible invaders” until they cause serious harm to ecosystems, economic interests, or human health. One such type of invisible invaders is tropical and subtropical, bloom-forming algae. Harmful algal blooms have massive negative impacts on local ecosystems and corresponding ecosystem services because they can 1) produce toxins, 2) produce large amounts of biomass in the water masses, and thereby compete for resources with other species, and 3) cause water anoxia as they die and decompose. Economic losses due to recent HABs have been estimated to millions of dollars for public health, commercial fisheries, recreation, tourism, monitoring, and management. One example of such an unwanted species is the tropical freshwater cyanobacterium Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii, now present in temperate zones, including countries bordering the Baltic Sea. There are anecdotal observations in Finnish and Swedish lakes, and Engström-Öst et al. (2015) suggest that the eastern Gulf of Finland with its warm summer temperatures and low-salinity water to be a potential hotspot in the Baltic Sea. There is thus an urgent need to develop systems for predicting and detecting this and other invisible invaders before they become problematic. Our research team is in a perfect position to supervise a 4-year PhD project to take on this challenge. We have expertise in cyanobacterial ecology, genomic methods for aquatic monitoring, species distribution models, and thermal adaptation. We will improve the scientific basis for early-detection systems for invisible invaders in and around the Baltic Sea in a project with the following specific aims. 1. To predict the distribution of C. raciborskii, and its potential niche overlap with other species, we will develop Ecological Niche Models for a set of native and non-native phytoplankton and cyanobacteria. We will use species occurrence data found in literature and species databases, environmental data from remote-sensing data sources, and on-site monitoring. 2. To evaluate the robustness of the ENM predictions for C. raciborskii from the previous aim, we will sample water and sediments from areas inside and outside of the predicted areas. To test the local accuracy of the model we will first and use genetic markers, which we are currently developing and testing, for fast and effective determination of species presence/absence. 3. To improve model predictions with assessments of the adaptive potential of the tropical freshwater species C. raciborskii to survive Nordic conditions we will perform a series of laboratory experiment, focusing on testing survival under Nordic winter conditions, Baltic Sea salinity levels, and ability to outcompete native species.