Impact Factor: 1.5
5-Year Impact Factor: 1.4
CiteScore: 3.1
UN SDG
Turkish Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 2019, Vol 19, Num, 12     (Pages: 1039-1048)

Fish Community Structure in the Mediterranean Temperate Lake Volvi at Two Different Stages of Pumpkinseed Invasion: are Natives in Threat?

Dimitra Bobori 1 ,Olga Petriki 1 ,Chaido Aftzi 1

1 Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, School of Biology, Department of Zoology, PO Box 134, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece DOI : 10.4194/1303-2712-v19_12_06 Viewed : 3117 - Downloaded : 2505 Lepomis gibbosus (L., 1758) (pumpkinseed) has been introduced in Greece accidentally and since then it has expanded its range and adapted successfully to several surface water bodies. Here, we provide baseline data on the status of fish community structure in the Mediterranean temperate Lake Volvi (Northern Greece) at the begging and three years after pumpkinseed`s invasion. Additionally, we present some aspects on pumpkinseed`s population characteristics to test the hypotheses of its invasion success and the potential impacts imposed to native fish populations. Fish sampling was conducted by benthic and pelagic, Nordic type, gillnets. A breeding population had become established in the lake within the three-years period studied. At the same time a decline in the abundance of some native fish species was observed. Pumpkinseed preferred the shallower habitats and exhibited trait similarity with the most native species, imposing thus a potential competed threat for local populations, especially for endemics that allocate the same habitats and compete for the same food resources with it. The efforts that should be implemented for the depreciation of species population and assessment of the general impacts of pumpkinseed invasion on natives are discussed. Keywords : Introduced, Abundance, k-dominance curves, Invasiveness hazards, Lepomis gibbosus