Round goby population differentiation across river barriers in Central Europe
2025
McCallum, Erin | Brodin, Tomas | Martin, Jake | Bose, Aneesh
River barriers such as hydropower dams and weirs can negatively affect river ecosystems by disrupting connectivity and reducing biodiversity. However, such barriers could also limit the spread of invasive species. Here, we used a spatial population genetics approach to test whether river barriers act as a hindrance to gene flow in the invasive round goby (Neogobius melanostomus Pallas, 1814). We sampled gobies from four different rivers across their invasive range in Central Europe (the Danube, Dyje, Morava, and Rhine rivers), with locations on either side of eight major river barriers. Using microsatellite genotyping, we found that round goby populations were differentiated with increasing number of river barriers and with increasing distance between sampling sites, depending on the river system in focus. We found significant population differentiation across three individual barriers, but no clear indication that this was related to barrier type as barriers were highly diverse. We also found reduced genetic diversity in populations that were more recently established. Our findings suggest that successive river barriers can sometimes slow the spread of round goby. Further research on the features of barriers that hinder round goby movement will help to design barrier passage solutions that will both limit spread of this invasive species and maintain connectivity for the native fauna.
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