Invasive species hitch transatlantic ride to UK on litter

GOOSE barnacles are travelling to the UK on floating plastic debris from as far as the east coast of America, new Government research suggests.

Scientists hope to understand how invasive species arrive in the UK, in order to build an early warning system to prevent damage to local biodiversity.

Researchers used a computer model, first designed to predict how oil would spread following a spill, to work out the movement of marine debris which can carry invasive species.

The scientists “backtracked” goose barnacles collected on marine debris off the southwest coast of the UK to waters off east America.

Peter Barry, the lead author of the report, said: “A real challenge for scientists has been to identify where the hitchhikers have come from. This model allows us to retrace their journey to understand where and how an invasion pathway is operating.”

The work was carried by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and funded by the environment department.