Project Overview Assignment 1 Assignment 2 ecological analysis Assignment 3 management recommendations References SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION Chinese mitten crab: picture #1 picture #2 Glossary: catadromous Assignment 2 Assignment 3 Invasion of Europe picture #3 picture #4 Oriental lung fluke: Paragonimus westermanii Establishment in San Francisco Bay Undersireable Outcomes Table 1a. Management Model Figure 1a  Regulations Table 1b   Regulations Table 1b Oriental lung fluke: Paragonimus westermanii Management Overview Figure 1b Project Overview back to the top Assignment 1 Assignment 2 ecological analysis Assignment 3 management recommendations References

Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis) - a threat to Washington State waters? Management Model Robyn Draheim, Jamie Goen, Florian Wegelein Assignment 1 May 4, 1998 SMA 510: Ecological Concepts for Decision Makers Introduction Management Problems Management Goals Table 1: Undesirable outcomes of mitten crab populations Management Actions and Regulations Figure 1a: Chinese Mitten Crab Management Model Table 1b: Vectors and regulations Assumptions Summary Figure 1b: Overview of Chinese Mitten Crab Management References Introduction The Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis H. Milne-Edwards, 1854), a catadramous burrowing species native to Korea and China, is listed in the Washington State Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan (unpub. working draft 1998) as "one of four [freshwater] species pose[ing] the greatest threat to Washington's environment and economy." The goals of this three-part term project are to 1.) identify the management structure and regulations currently in place, 2.) evaluate the ecological assumptions inherent in the management model, and 3.) make recommendations for institutional changes and further scientific research.This first assigment proposes to isolate the management problem, identify the goals of the current management, and describe the management model conceptualizing the specific management practices and associated regulations.     Management Problems The Chinese mitten crab is an aqautic nuisance species notorious for its invasion of Europe in the early 2Oth Century. In the 1930's the mitten crab population in Germany exploded, over-ran stream banks, swarmed through city streets and caused extensive damage to dams, levees and riverbanks (Slack 1996). Concern for the potential damage their burrows could cause, as well as fears of a human health hazard from the parasite Paragonimus westermanii (an Oriental lung fluke) led to a ban on the importation of mitten crabs into California in 1987 (Section 671(h)(2) Title 14 CCR) (Horwath 1989). In 1989 the United States (US) Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Chinese mitten crab as an "injurious species" (50 CFR 16.13) making its importation, capture and possession a serious crime. Despite these two bans on the import of mitten crabs they still became successfully established in San Francisco Bay (Carlton and Cohen 1997, Halat and Resh 1996). The introduction of mitten crabs into San Francisco Bay brings the threat of invasion closer to Washington State waters. With mitten crabs now established in three global transportation centers (China, Europe and San Francisco), the risk of ballast water introductions has increased significantly. In the summer of 1997 a fisherman in the Columbia River caught a mitten crab off of a pier, although no other sightings have been reported as far north (Seattle Times 1998). In addition, the demand and potential blackmarket for live mitten crabs is growing. Shipments of live animals have been confiscated at airports in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle, and several petitions have been submitted to the California legislation to allow mitten crab aquaculture (Cohen and Carlton 1997), suggesting that intentional introductions and smuggled shipments of live specimens could become more important introduction vectors.   Management Goals Current management of mitten crabs is aimed at reducing the threats of physical destruction, fishery damage and health hazards associated with the introduction of the Chinese mitten crabs into US waters, by limiting their dispersal. The potential, undesirable outcomes of a mitten crab infestation of Washington State are detailed in Table 1a.   Management Actions and Regulations To achieve the management goal, the maintenance of the current mitten crab-free status of ecosysytems (and industries) in Washington State waters, management actions focus on the introduction and spread of mitten crabs in estuarine and fresh waters. The Chinese mitten crab management model (Figure 1a) demonstrates the potential introduction vectors and the pathways that existing regulations address. Vectors through which the Chinese mitten crab can enter Washington waters include ballast water dumping, importation of live seafood, contaminated shipping / packing materials, shipment of scientific specimens, intentional illegal release, or natural dispersal. Introductions through ships' ballast water and illegal importation of mitten crabs as live seafood pose the highest risk for spreading the crab into Washington State's waters. There are few regulations that address, either directly or indirectly, the introduction of Chinese mitten crabs. Table 1b. describes in more detail both the primary and secondary vectors, the management actions which address them, and the agencies charged with their oversight. Washington State is in the process of reviewing a proposed management plan which would act as a framework to deal with impending or currently invading nonindigenous species, including the mitten crab, but it has not yet been implemented.   Assumptions There are assumptions inherent in the management model that should be acknowledged. Current ballast water regulations deal only with introductions from foreign sources, ignoring the potential for ballast water introductions from San Francisco. Vectors listed in Table 1b. that are not addressed by management actions are assumed to be non-existent. Management goals and actions do not address the impacts of established mitten crab populations. Finally, although health hazards associated with the Oriental lung fluke are a part of management goals, the model assumes that the only vector for the importation of the fluke is infected Chinese mitten crabs.   Summary The desired outcome of the management actions is to reduce the threats posed by the Chinese mitten crab to human health, fisheries, and riverbanks by preventing their introduction into Washington State waters. For an general overview of the management goals, actions and environmental outcomes, refer to Figure 1b.