the eel, Anguilla anguilla (L.)
Sagitta microstructure of the European conger eel (Conger conger) was analysed. The study used twen-ty-one pre-metamorphic leptocephali collected from the Iberian continental slope and the Bay of Biscay, and two metamorphosing larvae captured on the continental shelf near to the Minho River entrance...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.512.7407 http://homepage.ufp.pt/acorreia/documentos/Antunes %26 Correia 2003.pdf |
| Summary: | Sagitta microstructure of the European conger eel (Conger conger) was analysed. The study used twen-ty-one pre-metamorphic leptocephali collected from the Iberian continental slope and the Bay of Biscay, and two metamorphosing larvae captured on the continental shelf near to the Minho River entrance.The total length and the radii of the sagittae of the leptocephali ranged from 85 to 133 µm and from 113 to 260 µm, respectively. Daily rings were visible along the entire length of the sagitta radii of the pre-metamorphic leptocephali, with an average of 277 rings. A diffuse zone, where no rings were visible, was present in the sagittae of the two larvae which had already metamorphosed. The fact that conger eel larvae grow well up until metamorphosis, could be the reason for the clear visibility of most of the daily rings in the pre-metamorphic leptocephali. This could be useful, when comparing other species, for example the European eel, Anguilla anguilla, whose sagittae present a diffuse zone prior to metamorphosis. |
|---|