Assessment of biopollution in the Serbian part of tthe Danube River

Abstract

Introduction of alien species in aquatic ecosystems may or may not produce negative ecological and/or socio-economic impacts. In a case where impacts of introduced alien species are measurable, the biological pollution of the ecosystem should be evaluated. Assessment of biopollution of the Serbian reach of the Danube River was based on samples collected during August and September 2013. In total, 20 alien macroinvertebrate species were registered. For four species strong biopollution level was estimated: Chelicorophium curvispinum, Corbicula fluminea, Dikerogammarus villosus and Dreissena polymorpha. As these species were already proven to be highly invasive in other European waterways it indicates that applied biopollution level could be a valuable method for estimation of invasiveness of alien species.