Relative importance of vessel hull fouling and ballast water as transport vectors of nonindigenous species to the Canadian Arctic

Abstract

Ships’ hull fouling and ballast water are leading vectors of marine nonindigenous species globally, yet few studies have examined their magnitude in the Arctic. To determine the relative importance of these vectors in Canada’s Arctic, we collected hull and ballast water samples from 13 and 32 vessels, respectively, at Churchill, Manitoba. We compared total abundance and richness of invertebrates transported on hulls versus those in ballast water. We found that hull fouling was associated with higher total abundance and richness of nonindigenous species when compared with ballast water. Additionally, a significant positive richness–total abundance relationship for nonindigenous species for hull fouling but not for ballast water assemblages suggests that the likelihood of a high-risk (i.e., species-rich and high abundance) introduction event is greater for the former than the latter vector. The discovery of viable, widespread nonindigenous barnacles in hull samples further underscores the prominence of hull fouling over ballast water as a vector of nonindigenous species. Our study demonstrates that hull fouling is a more important vector for transfer of nonindigenous species to the Canadian Arctic than ballast water based on abundance and richness of nonindigenous species transported by the two vectors.