Cloey Callahan is reporting for the Times Union environmentalists are warning about the invasive round goby fish, seen as far south as Poughkeepsie and in the Erie Canal to the north, and the impact it could have on the Hudson River. They say it is a species that could do ecological and economic harm to the Hudson River. They are voracious feeders that outcompete native species for food and spawning habitat. They also eat the eggs of native species and popular sportfish such as smallmouth bass and walleye, as well as the eggs of forage fish, such as river herring. In addition, round goby carry and spread Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, which can lead to large fish kills statewide. The state Department of Environmental Conservation is working on a plan by May to block the invasive species from spreading in the Hudson River. Efforts are currently underway to keep the round goby from entering Lake Champlain through the New York canal system. A nonindigenous aquatic species tracker created by the U.S. Geological Survey had six sitings of the round goby in the Hudson River along Columbia County, and at least seven sitings along Dutchess County and more. The bottom-dwelling fish is native to the Black and Caspian Sea regions in between southeastern Europe and Western Asia. It was inadvertently introduced to the Great Lakes in 1990 and colonized all of the Great Lakes within five years. The fish then entered the Erie Canal in 2014. The invader was monitored by scientists, but never stopped by government intervention. If the round goby takes over, it could lead to a decline in striped bass because the species would consume the eggs of what striped bass usually eat, which in turn leads to a compromised ecosystem and less recreational fishing. Read more in the Times Union.