Prof. Susana Carvalho1, Juan Sempere-Valverde1, Sahar Chebaane1, Dylan M. Cottrell1, Anastasija Zaiko2, Oliver Floern, Vitaly Semin1, Marcos A. L. Teixeira1, Angelo Poliseno1, Abdulsalam Ardan4, Abdulwahab Alhosamai4, Mohammed A. Qurban4, Gregory Ruiz5, Eman Sabbagh4, Glafira D. Kolbasova1, Ronald Cadiz1, Joao Cúrdia1, Lotfi J. Rabaoui4, Eva Aylagas1
1Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, 2Sequench, Nelson, Aotearoa / New Zealand, 3Land, Water, People Ltd, , Aotearoa / New Zealand, 4National Center for Wildlife, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 5Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, United States
Abstract:
The Red Sea, a global marine biodiversity hotspot and home of many endemic species, remains severely understudied and underrepresented in online databases. As a major shipping corridor, it is vulnerable to the establishment of non-indigenous species (NIS), while its connection to the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal makes it a potential source of NIS into the Mediterranean and beyond. While some Mediterranean species have also migrated into the Red Sea, this is less frequent. The knowledge on the status of NIS in the region is limited partially due to non-existing comprehensive biosecurity programs. In collaboration with the governmental organization National Centre for Wildlife and local stakeholders, as well as international partners, we are developing a strategy to establish and implement a biosecurity plan for Saudi Arabia, focusing on three main pillars: building a local DNA barcoded reference library, unravelling the status and trends of NIS through seasonal collections of diverse samples in 7 locations (22 sites), and identifying priorities through modelling techniques. Once invasive species of high concern are identified, species-specific molecular primers will be developed to support accurate early detection efforts. Preliminary results have revealed challenges, including a lack of taxonomic knowledge and expertise in the Kingdom, high species diversity with numerous potentially undescribed species, and misidentifications in online databases. Our work highlights the importance of collaboration with governmental organizations and stakeholders, combined with innovative methodologies, to significantly advance and accelerate our understanding of NIS. This presentation will outline our framework, current progress, challenges, and future directions.