RT Conference Proceedings T1 Development of disinfection protocols for fishing gear to minimize the impact of invasive seaweed Rugulopteryx okamurae (Dictyotales, Ochrophyta). A1 Altamirano-Jeschke, María A1 Núñez, África A1 Loring Menéndez, Julia A1 Sydorenko, Anastasia A1 Zanolla-Balbuena, Maríanela Fernanda A1 De la Rosa Álamos, Julio A1 Rosas-Guerrero, Jesús A1 Carmona-Fernández, Raquel K1 Especies exóticas invasoras - Control K1 Algas marinas - Control AB Since its identification in the Strait of Gibraltar in 2016, the asiatic brown seaweed Rugulopteryx okamurae has produced unprecedented environmental impacts. But what has caught the attention of public administrations and the media has been the millionaire economic impacts it produces on the fishing sector and for beach management. The Spanish national strategy for the control of the species has identified the fishing sector not only as the main sector affected by the species, but also as a key player in controlling its dispersal. Huge amounts of R. okamurae biomass are trapped in fishing gear, which facilitates its dispersal if it is not cleaned and disinfected before being used in other areas. For this reason, the complicity of the fishing sector in the fight against the species is urgent, as well as the development of protocols for disinfecting fishing gear to minimize the potential of fishing activities to disperse the species accidentally. This paper will show on the one hand the collaborations carried out with the fishing sector to work together in the management of the species, and on the other hand the results of different laboratory experiments for the development of fishing gear disinfection protocols. These experiments have been carried out by studying the effects on R. okamurae photosynthesis, estimated as fluorescence measurements, of different treatments combining different chemical products, at different concentrations and application time, as well as physical stress factors such as osmotic shocks and high irradiance. All this to identify treatments that guarantee a mortality of the species above 90% in the shortest possible time, with the lowest economic cost and as innocuous as possible for the user YR 2023 FD 2023 LK https://hdl.handle.net/10630/27743 UL https://hdl.handle.net/10630/27743 LA eng NO Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech.Proyecto RUGULOPTERYX, Fundación BiodiversidadProyecto FEDRJA-006 DS RIUMA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Málaga RD 20 ene 2026