The racer goby, Babka gymnotrachelus (Kessler, 1857) invades the Evros river: evidence of recent establishment in Greece

Abstract

The discovery of the racer goby Babka gymnotrachelus in the transboundary Evros river basin, collected on September 10th 2018 at two locations very close to the Greek-Bulgarian and Greek-Turkish borderlines, is reported. This is a new addition to the non-native ichthyofauna of Greece and the Aegean Sea drainages, and it is the second non-native Ponto-Caspian goby to enter this river. Boat-based electrofishing sampling, following the EU Water Framework Directive monitoring program, provides first evidence of what is presumed to be a recently established population; most of the 13 collected specimens are juveniles and the species has not yet been located in the river's tributaries. Further study and international cooperation in monitoring and management of this and other alien species in the Evros are proposed.

Keywords

• Babka gymnotrachelus
• Evros river
• alien species
• transboundary river
• Balkans