School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Center of Molecular and Environmental Biology, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal.
Conserv Biol. 2024 Oct;38(5):e14359. doi: 10.1111/cobi.14359.
Trade in undomesticated ornamental animals has rapidly expanded beyond brick-and-mortar retail stores to now include growing numbers of internet marketplaces. The growing volume, diversity, and origins of invasive non-native species in trade challenge already weak national biosecurity policies. Despite widespread focus on vertebrates, many knowledge gaps exist regarding the online global trade of ornamental invertebrates. We conducted the first global assessment of the online trade in and associated invasion risk of freshwater crayfishes, which are increasingly popular aquarium animals. We systematically examined e-commerce marketplaces in multiple languages, scrapping information that included species identity, price, quantity, and shipping designation from each crayfish listing. Next, we combined geographic pathways of shipping associated with online trade (introduction risk) and environmental suitability modeling (establishment risk) to estimate global risk of non-native crayfish invasion risk. We identified hundreds of online marketplaces and thousands of sale listings in 33 countries (5 continents) involving 60 species and representing a selling value of ∼US$1.5 million. Invasion risk of non-native crayfish in trade was widespread, with geographic hotspots coinciding with both elevated opportunities for introduction (greater shipping offerings) and establishment. Precise characterization of the online species trade is fundamental to support new and reformed biosecurity policies, build industry partnerships, and design educational campaigns to prevent species invasions through trade. We found that the taxonomy, geography, and economics of the global online ornamental crayfish trade are vast and require greater attention.
野生观赏动物贸易迅速从实体店扩展到现在越来越多的互联网市场。贸易中入侵的非本地物种数量、多样性和来源的增加，对本已薄弱的国家生物安全政策构成了挑战。尽管人们广泛关注脊椎动物，但对于在线全球观赏无脊椎动物贸易，仍存在许多知识空白。我们对淡水小龙虾的在线贸易及其相关入侵风险进行了首次全球评估，这些小龙虾越来越受欢迎，成为水族馆的动物。我们系统地检查了多种语言的电子商务市场，从每个小龙虾的上市信息中筛选出包括物种身份、价格、数量和运输指定的信息。接下来，我们将与在线贸易相关的运输地理途径（引入风险）和环境适宜性建模（建立风险）相结合，以估计非本地小龙虾入侵风险的全球风险。我们在 33 个国家（5 大洲）发现了数百个在线市场和数千个销售清单，涉及 60 个物种，销售额约为 150 万美元。贸易中入侵非本地小龙虾的风险很普遍，地理热点与引入机会增加（更多的运输提供）和建立相吻合。准确描述在线物种贸易对于支持新的和改革后的生物安全政策、建立行业伙伴关系以及设计教育活动以防止通过贸易造成物种入侵至关重要。我们发现，全球在线观赏小龙虾贸易的分类学、地理学和经济学是巨大的，需要更多的关注。
