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Gorilla Ogo
Gracilaria salicornia
http://www.raingarden.us/gracillaria%20salicornia.jpg
Characteristics and Appearance
of Gorilla Ogo
• Found in tidepools and/or reef flats
• Brittle seaweed with cylindrical branches
http://www.hawaii.edu/malamalama/
2-5mm in diameter
2006/01/images/f4_algaeseaweed.jp
g
• Yellowish if growing in sunny spots
• Dark green or brownish when growing in
shaded areas
• Branching irregular
• Forked at tips with tips bluntly rounded
• Reproduces Asexually
http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/dar/cor
al/images/gorillaogo2.jpg
Origin of the Gracilaria salicornia
http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/ocean.jpeg
• Gracilaria salicornia
• Widespread in tropical Indian
and Pacific Oceans
• Introduce to Hawaii by
Philippine ships
• Found in Molokaʻi, Oʻahu, Big
Island
First Found in Hilo Bay in 1971
& introduce in Kaneohe Bay &
Waikiki in 1970s.
http://www.hawaii.edu/reefalgae/invasive_algae/rhodo/gr
acilaria_salicornia.htm
Gorilla Ogo's "niche" on the community
• A producer that lives in the ocean and
grows over coral, choking it and later
kills it.
• Has major effects on Hawaiian oceans,
like changing the ocean's temperature
• Most effects are negative
• Invades Hawaiian oceans and beaches
• Floats on shores of beaches
• Spreads quickly through loose branches
floating to different places
http://kauaian.net/blog/wpcontent/themes/default/images/sushi/
super-sucker-algae.jpg
Above: Gorilla Ogo covers
hawaii's reef on ocean floor.
Gorilla Ogo's "niche" in its community
(Continued)
CONS
• Grows over coral reef rapidly &
kills the coral/ seaweed
• Increases temperature on
ocean floor
• Prevents coral from growing
• Washes to shore, polluting the
beaches
• Drives fishes away from their
original homes
• Lessens diversity of coral reef
ecosystem
• Changes food web and food
chains of coral reef ecosystem
• Changes nutrient distribution
and cyling of coral reef
ecosystem
PROS
• Fish food for passing fish
• Used as composting and
fertilizer for taro farmers
in Hawaii
http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.org/pests/gorillaogo.html
Out-Competing Competitors
Gorilla Ogo is able to out-compete it competitors because:
• Nothing really eats it. Very few fishes eat the seaweed.
• It has no predators
• Grows quickly and very invasive
http://kauaian.net/blog/wpcontent/themes/default/images/sushi/
super-sucker-algae.jpg
http://media.photobucket.com/image/gorilla%20ogo
http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/
%20affect%20environment/catelito2/gorillaogo.jpg
Hawaii-Business/April2004/Unwanted-Dead-Or-Alive/
http://cnnscitech.files.wordpress.com/2008/05
/algaehimag1.jpg
Reasons for Success in Hawaii
The gorilla ogo is so successful in Hawaii because:
• Grows quickly
• Primarily spread by fragmentation
• Large amounts of algae wash ashore on beaches
http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.org/pests/gorillaogo.html
Biological Problems Caused by
Gorilla Ogo
•
Grows quickly, covering massive parts of the
reef
•
Thick texture and overgrowth cause
suffocation, killing coral and other seaweeds
•
Reduces space for young new coral to attach
to the reef and grow
•
Not a prefered food source for many reef
dwellers
•
Changes bottom habitat, limiting access to
holes and crevices for larger animals
http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/
Hawaii-Business/April-2004/Unwanted-DeadOr-Alive/
Economical Problems Caused by
Gorilla Ogo
• Costs attributable to invasive species in the United
States amount to approximately $137 billion each
year
• U.S. agricultural cost alone round to about $72.7
billion
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_64TjEH6aotA/R7yWBuqRzoI
/AAAAAAAAAKE/Ga0IqgyqzJU/s200/
Print_SS_Uchino20.jpg
http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.
org/pests/gorillaogo.html
Impact on Hawaii's Ecosystems &
Native Species Displacement
• Known to compete with a native reef algae, G.
Coronopifolia, for area on the reef flat
•
Thick patches of Gorilla Ogo block corals from
sunlight and the flow of fresh seawater which
kills them
•
Smothers beds of sea grass
•
Rice coral is disappearing due to enlargement
of Gorilla Ogo species
•
Animals such as turtles and smaller fish are
forced to find new areas of rest due to the
limited space on the reef caused by large mats
of Gorilla Ogo
http://coreyfischer.com/images/
hawaii_collection/rice_coral.jpg
Above:
Disappearing Rice
Coral
Impact on Hawaii's Ecosystem & Native
Species Displacement (Cont.)
The lesser diversity an
ecosystem contains, the
more unstable it is.
http://i.treehugger.com/images/2007/10/24/su
per%20sucker%20algae-jj-002.jpg
• Populations of algae-eating fish and sea urchins
declined
• High diversity coral communities shift to algae
dominated reefs
• Greatly reduced species diversity caused by reduced
coral diversity
What is being done about the Gorilla Ogo?
• Marine biologists are very aware of
this invasive species
• They are letting the community know
about the invasive seaweed
• Citizens are manually picking invasive
seaweed, but not the most productive
way to get rid of the Gorilla Ogo
• Scuba divers are vacuuming the
Gorilla Ogo, which more efficient than
doing by hand
• SUPER SUCKER PROJECT by Nature
Conservancy & UH Mānoa
http://themolokaidispatch.com
/files/images/web%20pic.
img_assist_custom.jpg
Above: A man picks
Gorilla ogo from a local
pond in moloka'i.
What is being done about the Gorilla Ogo?
(continued)
• Government organization
called, "The Division of
Aquatic Resources” DAR
Contact them at:
•
Phone: 808-587-0100
FAX: 808-587-0115
email: DLNR.aquatics@hawaii.gov
 Ask for Dan Pulhemus, administrator
of Division of Aquatic Resources
 (808) 643-PEST
• Mālama Mauna Lua Bay
• HEAR & HISC
• Nature Conservancy & UH
Mānoa
• Another government
organization called "Aquatic
Resources Monit0ring”
• ʻAʻohe Limu ʻe- Alien Algae
clean -up
Division of Aquatic Resources
1151 Punchbowl Street, Room 330
Honolulu, HI 96813
•
Design & Analysis Team
US EPA
200 SW 35th St
Corvallis, OR 97333
 Contact Robert Nishimoto, Head of Design
& Analysis Team
What can be done by the government
to remove Gorilla Ogo?
• Make commercials about invasive seaweed
 Bring the problem to public's attention
 Get others to help clean infested beaches
• Publicate more local beach clean- up events
 Good for the environment
 Multiple people will clean coral faster
 Makes a good outing event for family and friends
• Have educational opportunities to teach the problem in
various school via environmental fairs
• Removal or clean-up of the invasive seaweed
THE MAIN IDEA...
• GRACILARIA SALICORNIA IS AN INVASIVE SEAWEED
THAT ALTERS THE CORAL REEF ECOSYSTEM
• GRACILARIA SALICORNIA IS NEGATIVELY AFFECTING
THE DIVESITY OF THE OCEANS
• GRACILARIA IS ALSO AFFECTING OUR ECONOMY
(no fish = less fishing = less fish to sell = less money)
• WE MUST PROTECT THE OCEAN AND ITS RESOURCES
FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS!
THE GORILLA OGO CAN BE STOPPED, BUT WE
NEED EVERYONES HELP TO GET RID OF THIS
INVASIVE SEAWEED TO MAKE HAWAI'I A BETTER
PLACE!
Bibliography
"An Introduction to Invasive Alien Algae in Hawaii: Ecological and Economic Impacts." SGNIS: Sea Grant Nonindigenous Species. Web.
29 Sept. 2009. http://sgnis.org/publicat/squasmith.htm.
"Aquatic Resource Monitoring." U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Web. 01 Oct. 2009. http://www.epa.gov/nheerl/arm/.
"Gorilla ogo (Gracilaria salicornia)." Hawaii Invasive Species Partnerships. Web. 30 Sept. 2009.
<http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.org/pests/gorillaogo.html>.
Gorilla ogo (Gracilaria salicornia)." Hawaii Invasive Species Partnerships. Web. 25 Sept. 2009.
<http://www.hawaiiinvasivespecies.org/pests/gorillaogo.html>.
Index of /blog/wp-content/themes/default/images/sushi." Sustainable Hawaii? island sustainability data, maps,blog, training from Kauai.
Web. 28 Sept. 2009. http://kauaian.net/blog/wp-content/themes/default/images/sushi/.
"Issg Database: Ecology of." IUCN/SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG). Web. 30 Sept. 2009.
<http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?s=1026&fr=1&sts=>.
"New Page 1." University of Hawaii System. Web. 30 Sept. 2009. <http://www.hawaii.edu/reefalgae/natives/sgfieldguide.htm>.
""Super Suckers" Slurp Invasive Algae Off Reefs." Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News. Web. 01
Oct. 2009. <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/07/070730-super-sucker.html>.
""Super Suckers" Slurp Invasive Algae Off Reefs -." DuikForum.nl. Web. 01 Oct. 2009. <http://www.duikforum.nl/duik-nieuwsengels/16708-super-suckers-slurp-invasive-algae-off-reefs.html>.
"SusHI | Sustainability in Hawai`i » sucking Hawaii’s reefs: gorilla ogo’s gotta go." Sustainable Hawaii? island sustainability data,
maps,blog, training from Kauai. Web. 01 Oct. 2009. <http://kauaian.net/blog/?p=862>.
"Unwanted: Dead Or Alive - Hawaii Business - April 2004 - Hawaii." Hawaii Business Magazine - Industry, Employers, Finance - Honolulu,
HI. Web. 01 Oct. 2009. <http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/HawaiiBusiness/April-2004/Unwanted-Dead-Or-Alive/>.