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Increase in density of genetically diverse invasive Asian shore crab (Hemigrapsus sanguineus) populations in the Gulf of Maine

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Abstract

Hemigrapsus sanguineus, the Asian shore crab, has rapidly replaced Carcinus maenas, the green crab, as the most abundant crab on rocky shores in the northwest Atlantic since its introduction to the United States (USA) in 1988. The northern edge of this progressing invasion is the Gulf of Maine, where Asian shore crabs are only abundant in the south. We compared H. sanguineus population densities to those from published 2005 surveys and quantified genetic variation using the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene. We found that the range of H. sanguineus had extended northward since 2005, that population density had increased substantially (at least 10-fold at all sites), and that Asian shore crabs had become the dominant intertidal crab species in New Hampshire and southern Maine. Despite the significant increase in population density of H. sanguineus, populations only increased by a factor of 14 in Maine compared to 70 in southern New England, possibly due to cooler temperatures in the Gulf of Maine. Genetically, populations were predominantly composed of a single haplotype of Japanese, Korean, or Taiwanese origin, although an additional seven haplotypes were found. Six of these haplotypes were of Asian origin, while two are newly described. Large increases in population sizes of genetically diverse individuals in Maine will likely have a large ecological impact, causing a reduction in populations of mussels, barnacles, snails, and other crabs, similar to what has occurred at southern sites with large populations of this invasive crab species.

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Acknowledgements

Thanks to Brielle Dalvano and Dr. Zair Burris for assistance in the field and with measuring crabs in the laboratory, to Drs. Mia Steinberg, Charles Epifanio, and Shawn McCafferty for sharing their Hemigrapsus sanguineus COI sequences, and Alexandra Ulin for assistance with PCR. Additional thanks to the Bates College Biology Department for providing space and facilities for analysis. Funding provided by a Bates College startup fund 3457-2025 (to JPL), and a Bates College research reserve fund 3829-9155 (to LMW). Research reported in this project was supported by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Grant Number P20GM103423.

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  1. Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Moss Landing, CA, 95039, USA

    Joshua P. Lord

  2. Bates College, Lewiston, ME, 04240, USA

    Larissa M. Williams

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Correspondence to Joshua P. Lord.

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Lord, J.P., Williams, L.M. Increase in density of genetically diverse invasive Asian shore crab (Hemigrapsus sanguineus) populations in the Gulf of Maine. Biol Invasions 19, 1153–1168 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-016-1304-1

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