Are salinity tolerances of non-native macroinvertebrates in France an indicator of potential for their translocation in a new area?

Because ofitsgeographicandeconomicposition,theWesternpartofEuropeandFranceisproneto biological invasions.Amongtheaquaticspeciesnon-nativetoFrance,ahighproportionofthesespecies are consideredtobesalt-tolerant.Toverifythisassumption,wecomparedthesalinitytoleranceof18 native andnon-nativespeciesinFranceinordertodeterminewhethertheintroducednon-nativespecies are moresalt-tolerantthanthenativeones.Contrarytoourexpectations,ourstudyshowsthatbothnative and non-nativemacroinvertebratespeciesfromthesametaxonomicgroupwhichhadoriginatedfrom within Eurasiahadverysimilarsalinitytolerance.Ourresultsshowthatspeciesoriginatefromoutside Eurasia (introducedbytheballastordrinkingwateronships)weremoresalttolerantthannativefrom France andnon-nativespeciesoriginatedfromEurasia.Thus,derivationoftheacutetestofthesalinity tolerance innativerangesmaygivegoodindicationsoftheirpotentialabilitytosurviveduringthe translocation byshippingfromtheareaoforigintoanotherarea.Ourapproachdoesprovideempirical evidence forpotentialofnon-nativespeciestosurvivetranslocationinsalinewaterusingstandard,quick and inexpensiveprotocols.