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Downstream drift of round goby ( Neogobius melanostomus ) and tubenose goby ( Proterorhinus semilunaris ) in their non‐native area
Author(s) -
Janáč Michal,
Šlapanský Luděk,
Valová Zdenka,
Jurajda Pavel
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
ecology of freshwater fish
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.667
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1600-0633
pISSN - 0906-6691
DOI - 10.1111/eff.12037
Subject(s) - round goby , neogobius , goby , biological dispersal , biology , range (aeronautics) , ecology , fishery , fish <actinopterygii> , population , materials science , demography , sociology , composite material
Several Ponto‐Caspian gobiid species have recently expanded their ranges in Europe and North America. This is the first study to demonstrate passive downstream dispersal (drift) of the round goby ( Neogobius melanostomus ) and tubenose goby ( Proterorhinus semilunaris ) in newly colonised areas (River Dyje, Danube basin), a factor that could play an important role in their dispersal. Drift duration (i.e. number of dates on which the species was caught) in round goby was longer than that of both native species and tubenose goby, providing a possible advantage. Size of drifting fish was restricted to a narrow range of 6–8 mm and 5–8 mm for round and tubenose goby, respectively. Drift in both species occurred almost completely during hours of darkness (<1 lux) and fish size did not vary throughout the night. In both species, drift density increased significantly during the first hour after dusk. Round goby density gradually decreased up to dawn, while tubenose goby density varied throughout the night with no clear pattern. Drift of early life stages appears to be an important phenomenon that has not received adequate attention in studies of round and tubenose goby ecology and dispersal.