A comparative analysis of helminth faunas and infection parameters of ten species of gobiid fishes (Actinopterygii: Gobiidae) from the north-western Black Sea

The ichthyofauna of the Black Sea is comparatively poor and includes about 200 species (Boltacev 2003). The gobiid fishes (Actinopterygii: Gobiidae) are a large group of approximated by 28 species inhabiting coastal habitats of the Black Sea (Miller 1986, Smirnov 1986, Rass 1993). Five Black-Sea gobiid species are important commercially (Smirnov 1986) and they have also been targeted by anglers. In the north-western Black Sea (NWBS), gobiids can be found in different salinities ranging from fresh water (0.5‰ salinity off the Dniester River mouth) to full-salinity sea water (30‰–35‰ in the Tuzly group of lagoons). These fish make up two groups according to their origin: 1) Ponto-Caspian relict species that are endemics of the Sarmatic and Pontic basins; typical representatives of this group are: Mesogobius batrachocephalus (Pallas, 1811); ACTA ICHTHYOLOGICA ET PISCATORIA (2005) 35 (2): 103–110