Assessing the impact of the invasive ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi on artisanal fisheries in the Venice Lagoon: an interdisciplinary approach

Abstract

The sea walnut, Mnemiopsis leidyi, has invaded and expanded throughout the whole Mediterranean Sea basin. Large blooms were recorded also in the Venice Lagoon (Italy), an ecosystem rich with biodiversity which supports multiple services, including artisanal fishery production. To investigate M. leidyi impacts on lagoon artisanal fisheries, we combined fishers’ local ecological knowledge, fishery landing time series analysis, and field sampling. Firstly, we interviewed artisanal fishers to date the blooms of M. leidyi . Secondly, we analyzed long-term fishery landings records to detect whether changes in landings quantity and composition were related to the ctenophore invasion. Thirdly, we sampled catches of the lagoon fyke nets. This interdisciplinary approach overcame the weaknesses of single methodologies and allowed us to reconstruct the temporal phases of M. leidyi invasion in the Venice Lagoon. Moreover, our results indicate that the lagoon landings significantly declined with the blooms, paralleled by the increase of water temperature. Finally, we showed that the mechanical obstruction of the nets, caused by the massive ctenophore blooms, strongly impacts fishing activities. Our results are a first step in assessing the short and long-term impacts of this invasive species on lagoon ecosystems, including its socioeconomic consequences, whose better understanding is fundamental to inform mitigation and adaptation measures.

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