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Gyrodactylus avalonia ex Lepomis gibbosus, Danube Delta, Vylkove, Ukraine. A) complex of central anchors with ventral and dorsal bar; B) marginal hook; Scale bar = 10 µm.
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The Danube Delta is a recognised hot-spot for non-indigenous aquatic species, with 11 new species recorded over the last 20 years. The North-American pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus L., 1758), has been common in the Ukrainian Danube Delta since 1918, while the Chinese sleeper (Perccottus glenii Dybowski, 1877) has only recently been introduced. In Ap...
Citations
... Fish play a crucial role in the economies of many countries, yet risk management measures, such as quarantine controls, are often less stringent than for other animals [1]. monogeneans [38,[46][47][48], cestodes [49], and trematodes [50,51]. However, these studies have predominantly focused on pumpkinseed populations of the common cox1 haplotype. ...
... Diversity 2024, 16, x FOR PEER REVIEW 3 of 16 different geographical regions, time since introduction, and host genetic diversity [36,38,43,44]. Studies on parasite communities have identified a range of North American parasite species co-introduced to Europe with pumpkinseed, including myxozoans [45], centrarchid-specific monogeneans [38,[46][47][48], cestodes [49], and trematodes [50,51]. However, these studies have predominantly focused on pumpkinseed populations of the common cox1 haplotype. ...
... Its presence in Europe dates back to the 1950s [88], making it one of the longest-known co-introduced parasites in pumpkinseed. Among the eight American monogeneans cointroduced to Europe [46,47], O. dispar represents the majority of single-species infections in many distant European populations. Records of single-species monogenean infection of pumpkinseed by O. dispar have been reported in various European regions, including southwest England [44], the basins of the Oder in Poland [36], the Dnieper in Ukraine [89,90], the Danube in the Czech Republic [38], and, in fact, the reservoirs on the Sado and Tejo rivers in Portugal [38]. ...
Multiple factors can facilitate invasion success, with the absence of natural enemies, such as predators and parasites, recognised as conferring a significant advantage on invasive over native species. Pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus (Centrarchidae) represents one of the most successful freshwater fish invaders in Europe. Previous research has highlighted genetic differences between pumpkinseed populations in Türkiye and those in other European regions, attributed to rapid adaptation to new environmental conditions. This study aimed to investigate whether these highly adapted pumpkinseed populations in Türkiye benefit from a potential release from parasites, as proposed by the enemy-release hypothesis. Genetic characterisation of pumpkinseed populations from both European and Asian parts of Türkiye revealed that they share the same cytochrome c oxidase I haplotype as European populations. Microsatellite analysis indicated low genetic diversity, with STRUCTURE analysis confirming the clustering of all Turkish populations, suggesting a common source. Consistent with the low genetic diversity indicative of a small founding population, we observed a limited number of co-introduced parasite species, including the myxozoan Myxobolus dechtiari, the monogenean Onchocleidus dispar, and the digenean Posthodiplostomum centrarchi. Parasite infection by local parasites acquired in Türkiye was rare. Parasite diversity, species richness, and equitability were low, with only nine parasite taxa identified in all four pumpkinseed populations. The most diverse parasite community was found in Değirmenköy Reservoir, located in the Euro-pean part of Türkiye, where seven parasite taxa were identified. While our study did not uncover genetically distinct pumpkinseed populations in Türkiye, the fish demonstrated resilience against most local parasite species, potentially providing them with an advantage over native species, aligning with the enemy-release hypothesis.
... Two co-introduced monogenean species, O. dispar and O. similis, are widely distributed in Europe, having been recorded in non-native pumpkinseed populations in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Serbia and Slovakia [6,33,42,43,47,68,69]. In Ukraine, both species are known from the Danube basin [70], but only O. dispar has been found in the Dnipro (Dnieper) river basin [34,48]. In Czechia, while both Onchocleidus species have previously been recorded from pumpkinseed caught in the Dyje River in the Danube River basin and the Donbas sandpit in the Morava River basin [6,42], recent pumpkinseed populations in waterbodies of the Dyje River floodplain appear to be parasitised with O. dispar only [this study , 42]. ...
Purpose The aim of this study was the comparative analysis of the parasite communities of new populations of invasive pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) in western Ukraine with pumpkinseed from Czechia, where populations have rapidly
expanded over the last two decades.
Methods Sampling took place at three localities in western part of Ukraine (i.e. Dobrotvir Reservoir (Vistula basin), Burshtyn Reservoir (Dniester basin), Mynai Pond (Danube basin)) and four in Czechia (i.e. Oxbow D2, Heršpický Pond (Danube basin),
and Kolín oxbow and Římov Reservoir (Elbe basin).
Results In total, 11 parasite taxa were recorded in Ukraine and 17 in Czechia. Four species were co-introduced from North America with their host, i.e. the myxosporean Myxobolus dechtiari, the monogeneans Onchocleidus dispar and Onchocleidus similis, and metacercariae of a trematode Posthodiplostomum centrarchi. High dominance indices were related to high abundance of co-introduced parasites, i.e. O. similis in Mynai pond and P. centrarchi in Dobrotvir Reservoir. Overall abundance of acquired parasites was generally low.
Conclusion This study shows that parasite communities in recently established
pumpkinseed populations in western part of Ukraine and Czechia are less diverse than those established in Europe for decades. The generally low parasite load in these new populations may play an important role in their ability to successfully establish and create strong populations by providing a competitive advantage over local species.
... Several nonnative parasite species are co-introduced into new regions with their original host species. These non-native parasites frequently persist as a part of the host's fauna and can extend their range as the host increases their range [2,3]. Sometimes a few co-introduced parasite species can switch to a new host species that is native to that particular region, though it spreads in the new environment [4][5][6][7][8]. ...
Non-native fish species and their parasites are a threat to aquatic ecosystems, posing a risk to inherited communities by diminishing biodiversity and causing severe commercial and public health impacts. Along with their fish hosts, monogenean parasites are often co-introduced into new areas. In the western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India, a range expansion for the non-native monogenean parasite was recorded. This study confirmed the co-introduction of the dactylogyrid, Gussevia asota Kritsky et al. (1989), into India with their fish host, the invasive Oscar, Astronotus ocellatus Agassiz, 1831. The present species were also distinguished based on molecular analysis of their 18S rDNA sequence and the haptoral parts and male copulatory organ. Phylogenetic analysis of G. asota showed that it clustered with other dactylogyrid species, supporting the contention that it co-introduced parasites, increasing the number of monogeneans acquired in Indian water.
... Micropterus salmoides is now mainly found in the Iberian Peninsula, France and Italy [8], and its parasites were mostly studied in southern Europe. Researchers who showed interest in these species' parasites carried out their studies mostly in eastern Europe (16 articles, e.g., [48,[61][62][63][64]), followed by western (e.g., [49,[65][66][67]) and southern (e.g., [53,54,68]) Europe ( Figure 4). Since its introduction, L. gibbosus spread successfully into adjacent water bodies and established populations throughout Europe [60]. ...
... Micropterus salmoides is now mainly found in the Iberian Peninsula, France and Italy [8], and its parasites were mostly studied in southern Europe. Researchers who showed interest in these species' parasites carried out their studies mostly in eastern Europe (16 articles, e.g., [48,[61][62][63][64]), followed by western (e.g., [49,[65][66][67]) and southern (e.g., [53,54,68]) Europe ( Figure 4). ...
... Austria [21], Bulgaria [21,33,48], Croatia [33], Czech Republic [21,33], France [20,21], Norway [50], Germany [21,49], Italy [52][53][54], Slovakia [33], Ukraine [61] Onchocleidus sp. Lepomis gibbosus Germany [21,49], Norway [50] Unidentified Ancyrocephalidae Lepomis gibbosus Austria [21], France [21] Gyrodactylidae Gyrodactylus avalonia Lepomis gibbosus Ukraine [61] Gyrodactylus macrochiri Lepomis gibbosus France [20,21] None of the reviewed articles reported any adverse effect of the co-introduction of these parasites, either on their hosts or in the recipient area. ...
The introduction of non-native freshwater fish is a primary cause of aquatic biodiversity loss at global scale. Such introductions have a severe impact on freshwater ecosystems in terms of competition, predation, habitat alteration, genetic pollution and transmission of diseases and parasites. A systematic review was conducted on the helminths parasites of freshwater fish in the context of species introduction and a total of 199 publications were retrieved between 1969 and November 2022. Several scenarios may arise when a new fish species arrive in a recipient area. Non-native fish hosts can co-introduce their parasites without transmitting them to native fish (e.g., the case of North American Centrarchidae and their Monogenea parasites). Another possible outcome is the transfer of these parasites to the native fish fauna (spillover, e.g., the cases of the Nematoda Anguillicola crassus Kuwahara, Niimi & Itagaki, 1974 and the Monogenea Gyrodactylus salaris Malmberg, 1957). Reciprocally, non-native fish hosts may acquire parasites in their new distribution range whether these parasites are native or were previously introduced (e.g., the cases of Ponto-Caspian Gobiidae and the Chinese sleeper Perccottus glenii Dybowski, 1877). Acquired parasites can then be spilled back to the native fauna. This phenomenon is of particular interest when non-native fish hosts influence the dynamics of zoonotic parasites.
... More than twenty alien aquatic animals have been identified in the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta and water bodies as a result of many years of research and this is mostly related to the findings of invertebrates including both free-living and parasitic species (Aleksandrov et al. 2014;Lyashenko et al. 2005;Son 2008Son , 2010Sanzhak et al. 2012;Kvach et al. 2018;Kudriashov 2020;Zorina-Sakharova and Lyashenko 2020;Morhun et al. 2022;Zhmud et al. 2022). In addition to this, as well the new findings of fish are known from this waterbody (Kvach 2012;Kvach and Kutsokon 2017;Kvach et al. 2022). ...
Studies of alien aquatic invertebrates in 2021–2022 covered fresh marine and transitional waters mostly within the boundaries of the Danube Biosphere Reserve. As a result of these studies, important new findings of six species of aquatic macroinvertebrates were obtained: Menetus dilatatus (Gould, 1841) is first indicated for the Danube Basin, and three marine species (Arcuatula senhousia (Benson, 1842), Polydora cornuta Bosc, 1802 and Streblospio gynobranchiata Rice & Levin, 1998) for the first time for Ukrainian Danube Delta. For two species (Pectinatella magnifca (Leidy, 1851) and Ferrissia californica (Rowell, 1863)), new localities were found within the delta. In the case of M. dilatatus, the pathway of entry into the Danube Delta is an absolute mystery. The most likely pathway of dispersal of this species is natural dispersion, both along the river network and associated with waterfowl, however, the large distance between the Danube Delta and the nearest locations in Western Ukraine makes direct transportation unlikely. In all probability, the similarity of this species with local species leads to the formation of cryptic populations, not identified by researchers, which may be intermediate stages of species expansion towards the Northern Black Sea area.
... Recently, the Nearctic G. avalonia has been recorded on the sunfish L. gibbosus in the Black Sea basin -from a canal at the town of Vylkove, Danube Delta, Ukraine (Kvach et al. 2018). Previously, only once L. gibbosus has been recorded as an accidental host of G. avalonia from the Lake Ontario, Canada (Hanek & Fernando 1971). ...
... We also confirm the similarity between G. avalonia and G. arcuatus (Table 1). Nevertheless, a minor morphological difference can be pointed out: dorsal bar with posteromedial notch in G. arcuatus (Fig. 13a, b and Fig. 8b of Malmberg 1957Malmberg , 1970 Kvach et al. 2018). This character is difficult for observation and its value for differentiation between the two species is not always easy for application. ...
Totally, 134 individuals of Gasterosteus aculeatus from the Lake Atanasovsko Wetland, Bulgaria, were examined for helminth parasites. Five helminth species were identified: the trematode Posthodiplosto-mum brevicaudatum (metacercariae), the monogenean Gyrodactylus arcuatus, the trypanorhynch cestode Progrillotia dasyatidis (plerocerci) and third-stage larvae of the ascaridoid nematodes Contracaecum sp. and Hysterothylacium sp. Of them, G. arcuatus was the most prevalent species, with prevalence (P%) 68.66, followed by P. brevicaudatum (P% 22.39). The remaining species were weakly represented: Hys-terothylacium sp. (P% 4.48), P. dasyatidis (P% 3.73) and Contracaecum sp. (P% 0.75). The present study is the first record of G. aculeatus as a host of a species of Contracaecum from the Black Sea basin. Gyro-dactylus arcuatus is a new record for the Bulgarian fauna.
... Furthermore, in accordance with other European populations, we expect generally low genetic diversity given the fish are predicted to originate from a single lineage (see Slynko et al., 2014). The most comprehensive data to date on pumpkinseed parasites in Ukraine comes from the Danube Delta, where seven parasite species have been recorded, including the myxozoans Myxobolus mülleri and M. exiguus, the monogeneans Onchocleidus similis and Gyrodactylus avalonia, the digeneans Nicolla skrjabini and Tylodelphys clavata, and one nematode Schulmanela petruschewskii (Kulakovskaya and Koval, 1973;Kvach et al., 2018). In addition, Pomphorhynchus tereticollis has been recorded in fish from Crimean waters (Stryukov and Moskvina, 2017) and Onchocleidus dispar from the Kakhovka reservoir and the lower Dnieper (Rubtsova, 2015). ...
... The first Ukrainian studies on pumpkinseed parasites were conducted in the 1960s on the Danube delta, when Kulakovskaya and Koval (1973) found six species, of which just one, O. similis, was co-introduced with the fish host from North America. A few years later, Pashkevichute (1971) found two American parasites, O. dispar and O. similis, in the Ukrainian part of the lower Danube, and a further American species, the monogenean G. avalonia, has been registered in the Danube delta just recently, possibly having switched from sympatric stickleback hosts (Kvach et al., 2018). Though the diversity of North American monogeneans infecting pumpkinseed is higher in other European populations, reaching up to seven species on the River Durance in France (Havlátová et al., 2015), populations inhabiting the lower Danube basin and those derived from the River Danube, e.g. the rivers Struma (see Ondračková et al., 2021) or Dnieper (Rubtsova, 2015;present study), appear to be limited to just two Onchocleidus species, i.e. ...
In recent years, pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus (Actinopterygii: Centrarchidae) have spread intensively to many parts of Europe, including Ukraine. In this study, we 1) assess intra-population genetic variability in five widely-spaced Ukrainian pumpkinseed populations and compare their population genetic structure with other European populations, and 2) provide a comprehensive survey of pumpkinseed parasites across the region. Discriminant analysis of principal components and FST analyses based on microsatellites indicated that all five populations formed discrete clusters. Within Europe, Ukrainian populations were most closely associated with populations from the River Danube, suggesting that the Danube is the main source of all Ukrainian pumpkinseed populations. The parasite fauna comprised 15 taxa, most of which (92%) were native to North America (monogenea Onchocleidus similis and O. dispar; myxozoan Myxobolus dechtiari). Parasites acquired in the species’ new range occurred accidentally, with only Trichodina ciliates found relatively frequently and the eye flukes Diplostomum pseudospathaceum and Tylodelphys clavata occurring at higher prevalence. Absence of specific monogeneans in pumpkinseed from estuaries (Khadzhibey and Sukhyi Lymans) indicates low tolerance of Onchocleidus species to salinity.
... This parasite is a native species reported from freshwater fishes of North America. This non-native parasite was introduced to the fresh waters of Europe by the cointroduction of Pumpkinseed (Kvach et al., 2018). ...
This study contributes new knowledge to the geographic distribution of the Pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758). This fish has been reported from the Marmara Region of Turkey, but there are no records from Balikesir Province. In this study, fish samples were obtained from 2 irrigation ponds in Yağcılar and Kamçılı districts of Balıkesir Province. L. gibbosus was reported for the first time from Balıkesir Province as a new locality. The geographical distribution and records of the pumpkinseed are given with a checklist and map. Knowing the current distributions of the pumpkinseed fish is important for understanding their impact on the environment and biodiversity.
... Monospecific communities comprised of Chinese sleeper appear to be absent in more southern regions, where the species tends to form a component of relatively high diversity fish assemblages (Kutsokon et al. 2014;Kvach et al. 2018). It would appear, therefore, that the formation of monospecific Chinese sleeper fish communities is more likely in low production waterbodies such as the Latvian marshes; possibly because competition for food resources between Chinese sleeper and other fishes is much lower in highly productive waterbodies, such as those found in the Black Sea drainage, than in the mesotrophic and dystrophic lakes and marshes typical at higher altitudes. ...
The Chinese sleeper, Perccottus glenii, is an invasive species that has spread into Eastern Europe from its natural geographic range in Far Eastern Asia. Here, we provide a complex hydrobiological study of a marsh waterbody in the Ilgas Nature Reserve Natura 2000 site (Latvia) where we registered a monospecific fish community comprised of Chinese sleeper. While benthic organisms were predominant in the diet of Chinese sleeper of <70 mm, the diet of larger fish (particularly around 90 mm) included an increasing proportion of juvenile Chinese sleeper (cannibalism). In the case of the Ilgas marsh, we believe that low natural production (mesotrophic waterbody), piscivory and high competition for food has resulted in a monospecific fish community represented by Chinese sleeper alone.
... Hence, the finding of two specimens of this parasite on a fish from the University pond confirms its predatory behaviour on isopods. Acanthocephalus lucii has previously been recorded on Chinese sleeper from the Danube basin (Kvach et al., 2017;Kvach, Ondračková, Kutsokon, et al., 2018). (Moravec, 2013;Sudarikov, Lomakin, Atajev, & Semenova, 2006). ...
... The monogenean G. perccotti was only recorded in Ukraine at Lake Kartal and Vylkove on the Danube delta. While this species has previously been registered at Vylkove (Kvach, Ondračková, Kutsokon, et al., 2018), its occurrence at Lake Kartal indicates a wider range in the Lower Danube. ...
The Perccottus glenii is one of the most invasive of European fish species. During August-September 2019, we examined Chinese sleeper from six waterbodies in Latvia and Ukraine for parasites. Seventeen parasite species were registered, including two ciliate species, one coccidia, one monogenean, one cestode, six trematodes, three nematodes, one acanthocephalan, one parasitic copepod, and one bivalve glochidia. Maximum species richness was registered in Ukraine, with eight species at Vylkove and three species at Lake Kartal. Numbers in Latvia were generally lower with three species at Ilgas and just one at Gailezers. The parasite fauna registered in Latvia was poor overall, the richest site being the University pond. Two non-native parasite species were registered, the monogenean Gyrodactylus perccotti and the copepod Neoergasilus japonicus. Gyrodactylus perccotti was observed in Lake Kartal and the Danube delta in Ukraine, but not in Latvia, while N. japonicus only occurred in the University Pond in Latvia. This is the first record of this species in Latvia. Low parasite acquisition by the Chinese sleeper in Latvia may be caused by the release of this fish from aquaria, which is commonly registered in the region. It is likely that such low parasite loads have contributed to the formation of stable populations and the subsequent increase in expansion.
