Early detection of potentially invasive algae at the Port of Algeciras

01 March 2022

The Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA) promotes scientific studies aimed at understanding the evolution and risks of the reproductive expansion of Rugulopteryx Okamurae, better known as invasive algae, and assessing the risks of possible future associated biological invasions to the port infrastructures of the Bay of Algeciras and Tarifa, as well as its early detection and its eradication. To this end, the Port has just signed an agreement with the Research Foundation of the University of Seville (FIUS) to develop a project in the next 4 years, as part of the commitments to sustainability of the Port’s Green Strategy.

To this end, the multidisciplinary work team will use sentinel stations located at specific points in the Bay of Algeciras and Tarifa, which will be monitored to detect early the presence of exotic species with invasive potential, enabling their rapid eradication from the port. The invasive algae was detected for the first time in the Strait area in 2015, displacing a large part of the native marine biota, as well as its associated fauna, from their original enclaves.

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