Invasion Pressure on the Finnish Lake District: Invasion Corridors and Barriers

In a literature-based study, 29 non-indigenous species present in northeastern European waters were assessed for their potential for introduction and establishment in Finnish inland lakes. Their physiological and ecological demands were compared to abiotic and biotic lake conditions. The availability of adequate vectors was surveyed from shipping statistics for the Saimaa Canal, which connects the Finnish Lake District to the Baltic Sea. There exists a high probability for the introduction of six non-indigenous invertebrate species, i.e., Anguillicola crassus, Potamothrix heuscheri, Potamothrix vejdovskyi, Hemimysis anomala, Cercopagis pengoi and Gmelinoides fasciatus, with the Gulf of Finland as the main donor area. Barriers against new species introductions, which maintain the biological integrity of Finnish inland lakes, include low water temperature, northern isolated location, and low concentration of nutrients and major ions.