Invasion
Invasion Description
1st record: Romania/Black Sea (1966, Gomiou et al. 2002; Skolka and Preda 2010; Carlton 2023a)
Geographic Extent
Romania/Black Sea (1966, Gomiou et al. 2002, Skolka and Preda 2010; Carlton 2023a); Constanta/Romania/Black Sea (Preda et al. 2012); Bulgaria-Ukraine/Danube, Dniester, Bug estuaries (1966, Gomiou et al. 2002); Romania & Bulgaria/Black Sea (Bancila et al. 2022)
Vectors
| Level | Vector |
|---|---|
| Probable | Ballast Water |
| Alternate | Fisheries Intentional |
Regional Impacts
| Ecological Impact | Competition | |
| 'Mya arenaria, became a dominant species on sandy bottoms, inducing structural changes in native associations previously dominated by the bivalve Lentidium mediterraneum (Costa, 1829)' (Skolka and Preda 2010). | ||
| Ecological Impact | Food/Prey | |
| 'Since the tiny Lentidium mediterraneum is a food resource for the juveniles of many native bottom fish species while the juveniles of Mya arenaria are consumed by the adults of the same' (Skolka and Preda 2010). | ||
| Economic Impact | Aesthetic | |
| By the 1970s, 4-5 years after its initial discovery in the Black Sea, Mya arenaria became so abundant that it washed ashore in decaying masses, attracting huge flocks of seagulls (Gomiou et al. 2002). | ||
| Economic Impact | Fisheries | |
| During mass occurrences in the 1970s, Mya arenaria was fed to chickens (Gomiou et al. 2002). | ||