Carterville FRO technician Matt Wegener assisted in sampling for round goby, during the Carp Corral and Goby Roundup. 

Agencies including the Service, The Nature Conservancy, and Southern Illinois University came together for a week-long investigation into the movements of two invasive species, the asian carp and round goby. 

Monitoring efforts for asian carp looked to find the leading upstream edge of carp populations as they continue their path towards the Great Lakes.  Round Gobies, doing the opposite, are heading downstream away from the Great Lakes.

As a result, monitoring efforts for gobies were focused in areas below Peoria, Illinois on the Illinois River.  Wegener and his crew set more than 25 baited minnow traps and used angling surveys to monitor a seven mile stretch of the river.  After the week long survey of this invasive species, it was a relief to find that none were captured in new areas.  This is one case where no news is goods news.