The Nature Conservation Agency invites you to report on the marked round goby in the Baltic Sea. In order to more successfully study the round gobies found in the Baltic Sea and obtain the necessary data for the species management plan, it is planned to mark 8,000 representatives of the species on the coast of Latvia within two years.
The project LIFE REEF and the Scientific Institute of Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment "BIOR" invite you to report the cases of catching of marked round goby.
Ivars Putnis, Head of the Marine Division of the "BIOR" Fish Resources Research Department, explains that the round goby is an invasive species with a long spawning season, sometimes even several spawns in one season, and is not picky in terms of food. Males guard the spawning grounds, which further contributes to the rapid spread of the species.
In Latvia, specimens of this species are even larger than in their natural range - in warm seas, which confirms their well-being in the Baltic Sea. That is why it is time to study the species in more detail. The participation of the public, especially fishermen, in scientific research is very important, Putnis emphasizes.
Currently, 2,000 round gobies have already been marked in the Baltic Sea with a T-bar sign with the inscription "BIOR RIGA" and a special four-digit code. This year and next year, a total of 4,000 fish in the Gulf of Riga and 4,000 fish in the open part of the Baltic Sea will be marked in this way.
For each case of marked grunts, the Marine Division of the Fish Resources Research Department of "BIOR" should be reported by phone at 20 239 304 or by e-mail at "ivars.putnis@bior.lv". When contacting, you must report the code displayed on the tag, the full length of the fish, the fishing gear, the duration of the fishing, the date and the coordinates of the location, as well as send a photo of the fish to show the special code. The caught fish can also be frozen and stored whole for later transfer to the institute.