First genetically verified occurrence of Ligula pavlovskii outside its native range and characteristics of its infection in Neogobius fluviatilis

Abstract In this study, we provide the first genetically verified distribution record beyond its native range of Ligula pavlovskii, a high-impact endoparasite of Ponto-Caspian gobies. According to parasitological surveys, ligulosis was detected for the first time in monkey goby individuals collected from Lake Balaton in 2004, 34 years after the first record of monkey goby in the lake. During a Lake Balaton survey in 2018, we detected tapeworms in 44.4% of the sampled monkey gobies. This prevalence is about two to ten times higher than it was reported from within the native range of the fish hosts. The same survey revealed an uneven spatial distribution of the ligulosis in the monkey gobies inhabiting different shoreline sections of the lake. We assume that the occurrence and recent distribution data of this high-impact endoparasite may provide useful information for potential biocontrol measures of invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies in the future.