Global invasion and biosecurity risk from the online crayfish trade

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 to 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.

Olden, J.D., and F. Carvalho. 2024. Global invasion and biosecurity risk from the online trade in ornamental crayfish Conservation Biology. Article