Invasion
Invasion Description
1st Record:Tampa Electric Company Gannon Station Power Plant, Tampa/FL/Tampa Bay (7/1999, Ingaro et al. 2001; Baker et al. 2007) Sharp declines in the abundance of P. viridis occurred in the Tampa Bay area after severe winters in 2010 and 2011 (Joao Canning-Clode, personal communication).
Geographic Extent
FL/Ponce de Leon Inlet, Indian River Lagoon (10/2002, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2002; Baker et al. 2007, 29 04 N, 80 56 W); FL/Mosquito Lagoon (9/2004, Baker et al. 2007, 28 42 N, 80 43 W, single specimen); Freddie Patrick Park, Cocoa/FL/Indian River Lagoon (2010, Spinuzzi et al. 2012); Malabar, Brevard County/FL/Indian River (8/10/09, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009, 28.0036298 -80.5656089); FL/Sebastian Inlet (10/2006, Baker et al. 2007, 27 51 N, 80 27 W, juveniles common); Fort Pierce/FL/Indian Rvier Lagoon (10/2006, Baker et al. 2007; Sherry Reed, personal communication, 2007, 27 28 N, 80 18 W); Stuart/FL/St. Lucie River (10/13/2009, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009); near river mile 4 on north bank in Jupiter/FL/Loxahatchee River (9/26/09, USGS USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009); under the Blue Heron Bridge in Riviera Beach/FL/Atlantic Ocean (only one specimen observed during a brief dive -found inside a concrete block, 4/5/2009, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009); near Palm Beach Inlet and Peanut Island [Riviera Beach]/FL/Atlantic drainage at Lake Worth (6/29/2009, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009, 1 specimen); Everglades National Park, ~15 mi SE of Everglades City/FL/Gulf of Mexico (11/2002, Baker et al. 2007, 25 38 N, 81 12 W, Many specimens attached to gill net entangled on a Pristis pectinata Latham 1794 (Sawfish) rostrum); Marco Island/FL/Gulf of Mexico (7/2003, Baker et al. 2007, 5 55N, 81 44W, occasional-common); New Pass Bridge/FL/Estero Bay (2011, McFarland et al. 2015); Naples/FL/Gulf of Mexico (12/2001, Baker et al. 2007, 26 10 N, 81 48 W, occasional-common); Boca Grande/FL/Charlotte Harbour (7/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 43 N, 82 16 W, rare-absent); Captiva Island/FL/Pine Island Sound (3/2003, Baker et al. 2007, 26 28 N, 82 07 W, common on aquaculture buoys); Fort Myers Beach/FL/Gulf of Mexico (8/2002, Baker et al. 2007, 26 26 N, 81 55 W, common-abundant); Sarasota/FL/Longboat Pass, Sarasota Bay (7/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 28 N, 82 42 W, several specimens on buoy); Mote Marine Laboratory/FL/New Pass, Sarasota Bay (7/1999, Ingrao et al. 2001; Baker et al. 2007, 27 20 N, 82 34 W, common-abundant); US 41-Bridge, Venice/FL/Sarasota Bay (7/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 7 06 N, 82 26 W, several specimens on buoy); Safety Harbor/FL/Old Tampa Bay (12/2001, Baker et al. 2007, 28 00 N, 82 40 W, abundant); Gandy Bridge, Tampa/FL/Old Tampa Bay (11/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 53 N, 82 33 W, abundant); Tampa Electric Company Gannon Station Power Plant, Tampa/FL/Tampa Bay (7/1999, Ingaro et al. 2001; Baker et al. 2007, causing fouling in power plant, 27 54 25 N, 81 25 35); Skyway Bridge/Tampa/Tampa Bay (11/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 36 N, 82 38 W, common-abundant); Fort De Soto/FL/Tampa Bay (11/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 31 N, 82 38 W, common); Treasure Island/FL/John's Pass (11/1999, Baker et al. 2007, 27 47 N, 82 47 W); Anclote Key/FL/Gulf of Mexico (11/2003, Baker et al. 2007, 28 11N, 82 49 W, common-abundant); near airport/FL/North Bay (2008, USGS Nonindigenous Species Program 2009); FL/Pensacola Bay (2002, 1 specimen, Baker et al. 2007, 2002, 1 specimen, Ruiz et al. unpublished data); Baldwin County/AL/Perdido Bay (8/2011, USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Program, single specimen found by a dock in the bay by Eastern Oyster researchers); Mariel/Cuba/Gulf of Mexico (O'Brien et al. 2017)
Vectors
| Level | Vector |
|---|---|
| Alternate | Ballast Water |
| Alternate | Hull Fouling |
Regional Impacts
| Economic Impact | Industry | |
| Perna viridis was discovered when it was found to be fouling Tampa Electric Company Gannon Station Power Plant, and several other power plants in Tampa Bay. It also blocked seawater systems in the Mote Marine Laboratory, in Sarasota (Ingrao et al. 2001). This mussel increases the cost of fouling control in power plants (Baker et al. 2007). | ||
| Economic Impact | Fisheries | |
| Perna viridis is 'abundant on oyster reefs in Tampa Bay, and are correlated with high oyster mortalities' (Baker et al. 2004). | ||
| Economic Impact | Shipping/Boating | |
| Perna viridis fouls US coast Guard buoys, threatening to sink them, and requiring increased cleaning efforts (Baker et al. 2004). | ||
| Ecological Impact | Competition | |
| 'Green mussels are abundant on oyster reefs in Tampa Bay, and are correlated with high oyster mortalities. On pilings, green mussels displace oysters to a narrow band in the upper intertidal' (Baker et al. 2004). Barber et al. (2005) suggest that P. viridis might be able to out-compete the native Brachidontes exustus (Scorched Mussel) because of the former's faster growth, large size, and greater reproductive output. Baker et al. (2004) found that P. viridis co-occurred with B. exustus, and may exclude the oyster Crassostrea virginica in some habitats, but its impacts are limited by their preference for artificial structures, and their vulnerability to severe cold and toxic phytoplankton blooms (Baker et al. 2011). In experiments in Mosquito Lagoon, Florida, Perna viridis, on fouling plates, reduced the settlement of larvae of Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea virginica), but did not affect the growth of oyster spat (Yuan et al. 2016). Year-round high reproductive output and high energy reserves indicate a potential for competition with native Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea virginica (McFarland et al. 2016). | ||