Invasion
Invasion Description
1st Record?: ME/Damariscotta River (Glude 1955)
Geographic Extent
ME/Damariscotta River (Glude 1954; Bertness et al. 2002; Flynn and Smee 2010)
Vectors
| Level | Vector |
|---|---|
| Alternate | Ballast Water |
| Alternate | Dry Ballast |
| Alternate | Hull Fouling |
| Probable | Natural Dispersal |
Regional Impacts
| Ecological Impact | Predation | |
| Softshelll Clams (Mya arenaria) in the Damariscotta estuary, Maine, burrowed deeper in the bottom sediment in the presence of C. maenas, responding both to chemical and mechanical signals (Flynn and Smee 2010). In the tidal Damariscotta River estuary, predation by C. maenas limited recruitment of Blue Mussels (Mytilus edulis), in areas with slow current flow (Bertness et al. 2002). On exposed Pemaquid Point, exclusion of C. maenas by cages from cleared areas of rocky shore led to much more rapid colonization by mussels than from control areas (Bertness et al. 2004). | ||
| Ecological Impact | Trophic Cascade | |
| In the tidal Damariscotta River estuary, predation by C. maenas limited growth of mussels (Mytilus edulis), in areas with slow current flow, leading to the domination of the large seaweedAscophyllum nodosum (Bertness et al. 2002). | ||