Invasive Asian seaweed: An unwanted traveler on international ships

Deutsche Welle (DW)CenterEN 5 min read 100% complete by Irene Banos Ruiz | Juan David EscorciaOctober 25, 2025 at 04:26 PM

Read Original Article

AI Summary

long article 5 min

Invasive Asian seaweed Rugulopteryx okamurae is causing significant economic and ecological damage in the Mediterranean, particularly affecting fishing communities in Spain and Italy. The seaweed has been present for about a decade, leading to annual losses exceeding €3 million for small-scale fisheries in Spain alone. It disrupts local ecosystems by smothering seagrass meadows and altering habitats. The seaweed also impacts coastal tourism due to foul-smelling mats on beaches. Experts attribute the spread of this invasive species largely to international maritime traffic, which has introduced half of all non-native species into the Mediterranean since 1970.

Key Topics & Entities

Maria Altamirano ×230% University of Malaga 40% Palermo 50% Tarifa ×250% Gibraltar Strait 60% Italy ×270% Spain ×480% Rugulopteryx okamurae ×5100%

Keywords

invasive seaweed 100% rugulopteryx okamurae 90% mediterranean sea 80% fishing industry impact 70% ecological impact 70% non-native species 60% international shipping 60% coastal tourism harm 50% environmental damage 50% seagrass meadows 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.50

Source Transparency

Source

Deutsche Welle (DW)

Political Lean

Center (-0.10)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Rugulopteryx okamurae

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

Topic Connections

Explore how the topics in this article connect to other news stories

No topic relationship data available yet. This graph will appear once topic relationships have been computed.

invasive seaweed rugulopteryx okamurae mediterranean sea fishing industry impact ecological impact non-native species international shipping coastal tourism harm environmental damage seagrass meadows

Explore Full Topic Graph