What evidence exists on the impact of climate change on some of the worst invasive fish and shellfish? A systematic map protocol.

Background: The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has estimated that invasive alien species (IAS) might cause billions of dollars of losses every year across the world. One example is South-East Asia, where IAS have caused an estimated loss of 33.5 billion USD, affecting the environment, human health, and agricultural production. Factors associated with climate change, such as increased carbon dioxide (CO₂), heavy precipitation, and elevated temperatures is expected to facilitate biological invasion, leading only to further financial and public health loss. Thus, further study is needed to identify, collate and categorise what evidence exists on the impacts of climate change on fish and shellfish species that contribute to the list of "One Hundred of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species" as identified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN). Such mapping will identify regions more at risk of biological invasion as climate change progresses.

Methods: We outline a systematic mapping review protocol that follows the Guideline and Standards for Evidence Synthesis in Environmental Management and RepOrting standards for Systematic Evidence Syntheses (ROSES). We describe how peer-reviewed articles will be collected from Web of Science and Scopus, and then analyzed to create knowledge maps on the impact climate change has on invasive species. Finally, we speculate on how our results will aid future management of invasive species in the light of climate change.