<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<p>Round goby <italic>Neogobius melanostomus</italic> is one of the three invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies found in the Sava River basin in Croatia. It has a negative effect on the native ecosystems and is more abundant in highly polluted areas. The objective of this study was to determine the fluctuating asymmetry of four morphometric characters, as well as otolith width and length. Thirty individuals of <italic>N. melanostomus</italic> were collected and analysed at two sampling sites in the main course of the Sava (Babina Greda, Slavonski Brod) and in a modified habitat (Sava-Odra canal). The squared coefficient of asymmetry variation was used to analyse potential differences between populations. We identified variations in the asymmetry values of the analysed characters, as well as otolith width and length between sampling sites. The highest fluctuating asymmetry was observed in individuals at the Babina Greda sampling site, which could be due to high environmental stress. The results of the study show that the study of fluctuating asymmetry can be used on invasive fish species as a simple approach to identifying habitat quality.</p>
</abstract>

Round goby Neogobius melanostomus is one of the three invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies found in the Sava River basin in Croatia. It has a negative effect on the native ecosystems and is more abundant in highly polluted areas. The objective of this study was to determine the fluctuating asymmetry of four morphometric characters, as well as otolith width and length. Thirty individuals of N. melanostomus were collected and analysed at two sampling sites in the main course of the Sava (Babina Greda, Slavonski Brod) and in a modified habitat (Sava-Odra canal). The squared coefficient of asymmetry variation was used to analyse potential differences between populations. We identified variations in the asymmetry values of the analysed characters, as well as otolith width and length between sampling sites. The highest fluctuating asymmetry was observed in individuals at the Babina Greda sampling site, which could be due to high environmental stress. The results of the study show that the study of fluctuating asymmetry can be used on invasive fish species as a simple approach to identifying habitat quality.

Fluctuating Asymmetry in Morphological Characters of the Invasive Round Goby <italic>Neogobius melanostomus</italic> Populations from Different Habitats of the Sava River Basin, Croatia

University of Zagreb Faculty of Agriculture

Department of Fisheries, Apiculture, Wildlife Management and Special Zoology

Department of Ecology and Vertebrate Zoology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection

Croatian Journal of Fisheries

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Fluctuating Asymmetry in Morphological Characters of the Invasive Round Goby  Populations from Different Habitats of the Sava River Basin, Croatia

Round goby Neogobius melanostomus is one of the three invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies found in the Sava River basin in Croatia. It has a negative effect on the...

Fluctuating Asymmetry in Morphological Characters of the Invasive Round Goby Neogobius melanostomus Populations from Different Habitats of the Sava River Basin, Croatia

Published Online: Nov 14, 2023

Page range: 167 - 172

Received: Jul 07, 2023

Accepted: Aug 29, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/cjf-2023-0018

Keywords
Bilateral asymmetry, Invasive fish, Environmental stress, Bioindicator

© 2023 Valentine Planchet et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Fluctuating Asymmetry in Morphological Characters of the Invasive Round Goby Neogobius melanostomus Populations from Different Habitats of the Sava River Basin, Croatia

Published Online: Nov 14, 2023

Page range: 167 - 172

Received: Jul 07, 2023

Accepted: Aug 29, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/cjf-2023-0018

KeywordsBilateral asymmetry, Invasive fish, Environmental stress, Bioindicator

© 2023 Valentine Planchet et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
Bilateral asymmetry, Invasive fish, Environmental stress, Bioindicator