The brown shrimp Crangon crangon, has made it to Iceland. The increasing abundance of this species in Icelands’ coastal waters is likely to be caused by rising water temperatures.
An article in the Hamburg Abendblatt, a German newspaper, reported the story on 8th March. You can read the full and original article (in German) Nordseekrabben erobern Islands Küsten – Hamburger Abendblatt.
For all our English readers – a synopsis is below.
“Normally distributed across the North Sea, the brown shrimp is an invasive threat to icelandic fisheries. First spotted in 2003, the shrimp was introduced to Iceland by larvae being transported in ballast water; as a result, the species is now found in a number of locations in the south and east of the country.
Problems for native speceis are already beginning to show. Because the adult Crangon eat young plaice and sole, the abundance of juvenile (under 22mm length) plaice and sole is lowest in those areas where Crangon is present.
The increasing abundnace of Cragon crangon since 2006 is probably due to rising water temperatures around the Icelandic coast over the last 15 years. A study this summer will determine whether Crangon has spread to the previsuosly unoccupied North and East of Iceland. Unfortunatly, due to the shallow tidal flats around iceland, a commercial fishery in Crangon is not possible.
Thanks to rising water temperatures, the shrimp can now live and multiply in Iceland. Researchers are studying whether they threaten ancestral species”.
