Diet of the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus Pallas 1811) from the Danube and Velika Morava Rivers in Serbia

Abstract

Since the early 1970s the spread of the Ponto-Caspian gobiids along the Serbian part of the Danube River has been reported, mainly owing to the construction of dams and canals linking the larger rivers. The aim of our study was to analyse the diet of the round goby Neogobius melanostomus based on the fish intestinal contents and available food resources at selected sites in the Danube and Velika Morava rivers in Serbia. The fish samples were collected during October 2018, at three localities: Zemun and Stari Slankamen in the Danube River and Ljubičevski Most in the Velika Morava River. A total of 35 fish specimens were collected and examined. The analysis of the intestinal contents showed that N. melanostomus fed mainly on representatives of Gammaridae (Dikerogammarus sp.), insect larvae (Trichoptera, Chironomidae), Gastropoda, Bivalvia (Dreissena sp., Corbicula sp.), and Oligochaeta. The diet of fish from the Velika Morava River consisted mostly of Oligochaeta and Gammaridae, while the diet of fish from the Danube River consisted of larvae of Trichoptera and mollusks.