Mnemiopsis leidyi activities in

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• Mnemiopsis leidyi activities in
• the Caspian Environment Programme

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Presentation Overview

• Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
  leidyi and Beroe ovata
• Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
  in the Southern Caspian in 2005
• Recommendations

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• The ctenophore was reported to be present in the
  Caspian Sea by November 1999
• Within two years of introduction, significant
  decreases in the quantity and quality of
  mesozooplankton communities were reported and
  notable decreases in pelagic fisheries (mostly
  kilka fisheries) occurred in all Caspian countries

• Economic losses of kilka fisheries in I.R. Iran
  were estimated to be about 7 mln. US in 2002

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata

• Since July, 2000 till present CEP has organized
  several meetings and formed Biodiversity and
  Invasive Species Advisory Group with an emphasis
  on M. leidyi issues.

July 2000 2nd CEP Biodiversity Meeting, Almaty
Recommendation - to establish a special Working
Group of World-recognized experts on Mnemiopsis
leidyi to investigate the problem
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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
April 2001 First CEP Workshop on Mnemiopsis
leidyi

• Recommendations
• Beroe ovata is the best solution
• Apply ICES Code of Practice
• EIA of potential introduction
• Need for more data on ML
• Regional Working Group

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
December 2001 First meeting of CEP Mnemiopsis
Regional Advisory Group

• Recommendations
• Urgent control actions needed
• Beroe ovata currently only option
• Further studies on Beroe

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
June 2002 Technical Workshop CEP Invasive
Species Advisory Group Meeting

• Recommendations
• Beroe ovata currently only option
• EIA outline discussed

February 2004 Regional technical meeting on
Beroe Introduction

• Outcome
• Technical agreement on introduction
• Release programme discussed

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
September 2004 1st BISRAG Meeting

• Recommendations
• Beroe sufficiently studied time for action!
• Action plan for release needed
• Need to convince decision-makers!

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
December 2004 Steering Committee Meeting

• Recommendations
• CEP/PCU to prepare Synopsis of available
  information
• Based on Synopsis, countries will decide within 3
  months

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
April 2005 2nd BISRAG Meeting

• Recommendations
• No consensus agreement on Beroe introduction
• establish monitoring programme for southern
  Caspian to monitor Beroe and Mnemiopsis

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Brief history of CEP activities on Mnemiopsis
leidyi and Beroe ovata
June 2005 IAA with the IMO
to assess the traffic of invasive species into
and from the Caspian and pre-feasibility study to
build a ballast water reception facility is
currently in the implementation phase
August 2005 Review of national legislation
on introduction of alien species and
recommendations for the formation of a Caspian
Regional Body to evaluate and authorize the
introductions was initiated
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Presentation Overview
1. Brief history of CEP activities on
Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe avata
2. Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe
ovata in the Southern Caspian in 2005
3. Recommendations
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Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
in the Southern Caspian in 2005
Objectives

• to investigate possible presence of BO in the
  Caspian Sea, particularly in Southern Caspian
• to set up regional programme for monitoring of ML
  and BO in the Southern Caspian in coastal waters
  of Azerbaijan, I.R. Iran and Turkmenistan

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Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
in the Southern Caspian in 2005
Participants

• Azerbaijan Fishery Institute
• Iranian Fisheries Research Organization (IFRO)
• Khazar State Reserve, Turkmenistan

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Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
in the Southern Caspian in 2005
Sampling sites
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Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
in the Southern Caspian in 2005
Timing

• Monthly / last ten days

Equipment

• METU net, 500 micron

• Unified metodology and data reporting

Coordination and Consultation

• Mr. Negarestan, IFRO, Iran

• Ms. Shiganova, Shirshov IO RAS, Russia

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Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata
in the Southern Caspian in 2005
Highlights of 2005 monitoring

• B. ovata was not observed in the Caspian Sea
  during the surveys
• M. leidyi have reached higher abundance than
  those recorded for the Black Sea 8,400 ind.m-2
  in Turkmenistan in 2005 compared with the
  absolute recorded peak in the Black Sea of 7,600
  ind.m-2 in autumn 1989. In 2005 the maximum M.
  leidyi biomass of 1,300 g m-2 was observed in
  Iranian waters
• No stabilization of M. leidyi abundance and
  biomass is observed in the Caspian Sea during
  last several years

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Presentation Overview
1. Brief history of CEP activities on
Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe avata
2. Monitoring of Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe
ovata in the Southern Caspian in 2005
3. Recommendations
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Recommendations to SCM

• In order to confirm propagation and growth of B.
  ovata larvae in the Caspian Sea water a closed
  mesocosm controlled experiment in the Caspian Sea
  with the participation of the representatives of
  the five Caspian countries is needed. The funding
  of this activity is to be secured by CEP.
• It is reiterated that the only feasible control
  of Mnemiopsis leidyi in the Caspian Sea is the
  introduction of B. ovata. In order to mitigate
  the Mnemiopsis leidyi impact the urgent
  authorization of such introduction from all
  Caspian countries is highly recommended.
• It is again strongly recommended that the
  existing Mnemiopsis leidyi monitoring program of
  all littoral states to be continued, including
  nutrient, plankton and benthic dynamics

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Approved recommendations

• The SC strongly recommends that the existing
  Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe Ovata monitoring
  program of all littoral states to be continued,
  including nutrient, plankton and benthic
  dynamics, and further research based on pertinent
  views of regional technical groups.

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Other factors that have to be considered

• September 2005 experienced the first in the
  Caspian history large open-water cyanobacterial
  potentially toxic bloom along the Iranian coast,
  which was most probably associated with the
  increased nutrient content in the surface waters

Photo courtesy of Dr. Roohi
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Other factors that have to be considered

• The negative impacts of the increased numbers of
  ML enhanced by the ongoing eutrophication such as
  
• the appearance of the first coastal bloom of
  cyanobacteria in the southern Caspian Sea
• the increasing phytoplankton biomass
• decreased zooplankton biomass and loss of
  zooplankton species diversity
• the records of new invasive species

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Recommendations of SCM

• Noting the recent vast algal bloom in the
  Southern Caspian Sea adjacent to the Iranian
  Coastline the SC requests Iran to provide more
  detail information on recent bloom to the PCU and
  recommends research work on algal bloom by the
  member states with limited financial support from
  CEP-SAP on type of bloom species .