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da Silva JPCB. The morphology of the branchial skeleton of heterocongrines (Anguilliformes: Congridae) and its relation to their diet. ZOOLOGY 2024; 165:126185. [PMID: 38908325 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2024.126185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 06/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/24/2024]
Abstract
Members of the subfamily Heterocongrinae (Congridae) are a peculiar group of anguilliform eels that construct sandy borrows, form large colonies, and are popularly recognized as garden eels. They live with most of their bodies inside self-constructed borrows exposing their heads and trunk to feed on zooplankton, preferably copepods, that are brought passively by currents. As plankton feeders there was a suspicion that their branchial skeleton would have structures that could aid in the filtering process, such as highly developed or modified branchial rakers, which are observed in other suspension-feeding fishes, such as anchovies and sardines. Branchial rakers, however, were considered to be absent across Anguilliformes (except for Protanguilla). Nonetheless, specimens that were examined using clearing and staining and computed tomography showed, in all cases, branchial rakers associated with their gill arches. Heterocongrines have branchial rakers across their first to fourth branchial arches. These rakers are conical and apparently unossified, but further studies are necessary to attest its degree of ossification or its complete absence. Their pharyngeal tooth plates are reduced, a condition that may reflect their preference for smaller food items. Additionally, they may use crossflow filtering to feed, although detailed studies are necessary to clarify if hydrosol sieving may also aid in food capture. Furthermore, the present study proposes that the presence of branchial rakers should be better investigated in Anguilliformes with similar feeding habits as heterocongrines, considering that these structures may be more widespread within the group than previously considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Paulo Capretz Batista da Silva
- Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Centro de Ciências Exatas e da Natureza, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Castelo Branco, João Pessoa, PB 58051-900, Brazil.
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2
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de Barros FC, Grizante MB, Zampieri FAM, Kohlsdorf T. Peculiar relationships among morphology, burrowing performance and sand type in two fossorial microteiid lizards. ZOOLOGY 2020; 144:125880. [PMID: 33310388 DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2020.125880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Associations among ecology, morphology and locomotor performance have been intensively investigated in several vertebrate lineages. Knowledge on how phenotypes evolve in natural environments likely benefits from identification of circumstances that might expand current ecomorphological equations. In this study, we used two species of Calyptommatus lizards from Brazilian Caatingas to evaluate if specific soil properties favor burrowing performance. As a derived prediction, we expected that functional associations would be easily detectable at the sand condition that favors low-resistance burrowing. We collected two endemic lizards and soil samples in their respective localities, obtained morphological data and recorded performance of both species in different sand types. As a result, the two species burrowed faster at the fine and homogeneous sand, the only condition where we detected functional associations between morphology and locomotion. In this sand type, lizards from both Calyptommatus species that have higher trunks and more concave heads were the ones that burrowed faster, and these phenotypic traits did not morphologically discriminate the two Calyptommatus populations studied. We discuss that integrative approaches comprising manipulation of environmental conditions clearly contribute to elucidate processes underlying phenotypic evolution in fossorial lineages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fábio C de Barros
- Department of Biology, FFCLRP, University of São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-901, Brazil; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, ICAQF, Federal University of São Paulo, Rua Prof. Artur Riedel, 275, Diadema, SP, 09972-270, Brazil.
| | - Mariana B Grizante
- Department of Biology, FFCLRP, University of São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-901, Brazil; Instituto Dante Pazzanese de Cardiologia, Brazil
| | - Felipe A M Zampieri
- Department of Biology, FFCLRP, University of São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-901, Brazil
| | - Tiana Kohlsdorf
- Department of Biology, FFCLRP, University of São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-901, Brazil.
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Canei J, Trupia A, Nonclercq D. Cytological analysis of integumentary and muscular adaptations in three sand-dwelling marine teleosts, Ammodytes tobianus (Ammodytidae), Gorgasia preclara (Congridae) and Heteroconger hassi (Congridae) (Teleostei; Actinopterygii). JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2020; 97:1097-1112. [PMID: 32705684 PMCID: PMC7590194 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.14472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Sandy bottoms are a ubiquitous environment found from sea bottoms to intertidal and freshwater zones. They are inhabited by many invertebrates and vertebrates which have developed morphological and physiological adaptations to sustain life under these particular conditions. Sandy habitats exhibit three potential constraints: abrasion, hypoxia and mechanical resistance. Here, three teleost species living in sandy environments were investigated: Ammodytes tobianus (Ammodytidae), Gorgasia preclara and Heteroconger hassi (Congridae). These teleost fishes were studied for their integument and muscular systems, which are potentially subject to sand abrasion and hypoxia, respectively. Based on histochemistry and transmission electron microscopy, we found the complex mucus system of G. preclara and H. hassi consists of two types of goblet cells and one type of sacciform cell. The secretions of both species are made of complex polysaccharides. In contrast, the scaly integument of A. tobianus has only a few goblet cells and no sacciform cells. We also highlighted, by immunohistochemistry, that the epidermal cell proliferation was much higher for this latter species, potentially resulting from the high rate of sand abrasion when A. tobianus buries itself quickly in the substrate. For all species, the major muscle fibre type was revealed by histoenzymology and corresponds to fast glycolytic fibres followed by intermediate fibres with slow fibres in the lowest proportion. Ammodytes tobianus possesses the highest fast fibre proportion (about 87% for A. tobianus and 75-78% for both garden eels). Our results provide new insights into the previously poorly studied teleost species, such as G. preclara, and allow us to highlight the complex skin histology of both garden eel species. Furthermore, the previously unknown muscle typing of these three species was determined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jérôme Canei
- Laboratory of HistologyBiosciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of MonsMonsBelgium
| | - Arnaud Trupia
- Laboratory of HistologyBiosciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of MonsMonsBelgium
| | - Denis Nonclercq
- Laboratory of HistologyBiosciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of MonsMonsBelgium
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Macaluso L, Carnevale G, Casu R, Pietrocola D, Villa A, Delfino M. Structural and environmental constraints on reduction of paired appendages among vertebrates. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blz097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
AbstractBurrowing habits or complex environments have generally been considered as potential drivers acting on reduction and loss of the appendicular skeleton among vertebrates. Herein, we suggest that this might be the case for lissamphibians and squamates, but that fin loss in fishes is usually prevented by important structural constraints, because pectoral fins are commonly used to control rolling and pitching. We provide an overview of the distribution of paired appendage reduction across vertebrates while examining the ecological affinities of finless and limbless clades. We analysed the correlation between lifestyle and fin or limb loss using the discrete comparative analysis. The resulting Bayesian factors indicate strong evidence of correlation between: (1) pectoral-fin loss and coexistence of anguilliform elongation and burrowing habits or complex habitat in teleost fishes; and (2) limb loss and a burrowing or grass-swimming lifestyle in squamate reptiles and lissamphibians. These correlations suggest that a complex environment or a fossorial habit is a driving force leading to appendage loss. The only style of locomotion that is functional even in the absence of paired appendages is the undulatory one, which is typical of all elongated reptiles and lissamphibians, but certainly less common in teleost fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loredana Macaluso
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso, Torino, Italy
| | - Giorgio Carnevale
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso, Torino, Italy
| | - Raffaello Casu
- Dipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Pietro Giuria, Torino, Italy
| | - Daniel Pietrocola
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso, Torino, Italy
| | - Andrea Villa
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso, Torino, Italy
- Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie, Richard-Wagner-Straße, München, Germany
| | - Massimo Delfino
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso, Torino, Italy
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici Z (ICTA-ICP), Carrer de les Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, Cerdanyola del Valles, Barcelona, Spain
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Eagderi S, Christiaens J, Boone M, Jacobs P, Adriaens D. Functional Morphology of the Feeding Apparatus inSimenchelys parasitica(Simenchelyinae: Synaphobranchidae), an Alleged Parasitic Eel. COPEIA 2016. [DOI: 10.1643/ci-15-329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Datovo A, Vari RP. The adductor mandibulae muscle complex in lower teleostean fishes (Osteichthyes: Actinopterygii): comparative anatomy, synonymy, and phylogenetic implications. Zool J Linn Soc 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/zoj.12142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Aléssio Datovo
- Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo; Av. Nazaré 481 04263-000 São Paulo SP Brazil
- Laboratório de Ictiologia de Ribeirão Preto; FFCLRP; Departamento de Biologia; Universidade de São Paulo; Av. dos Bandeirantes 3900 14040-901 Ribeirão Preto SP Brazil
- Division of Fishes; Department of Vertebrate Zoology; National Museum of Natural History; Smithsonian Institution; MRC-159, PO Box 37012 Washington, DC 20013-7012 USA
| | - Richard P. Vari
- Division of Fishes; Department of Vertebrate Zoology; National Museum of Natural History; Smithsonian Institution; MRC-159, PO Box 37012 Washington, DC 20013-7012 USA
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BARROS FC, HERREL A, KOHLSDORF T. Head shape evolution in Gymnophthalmidae: does habitat use constrain the evolution of cranial design in fossorial lizards? J Evol Biol 2011; 24:2423-33. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2011.02372.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Herrel A, Choi HF, Dumont E, De Schepper N, Vanhooydonck B, Aerts P, Adriaens D. Burrowing and subsurface locomotion in anguilliform fish: behavioral specializations and mechanical constraints. J Exp Biol 2011; 214:1379-85. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.051185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
SUMMARY
Fish swimming is probably one of the most studied and best understood locomotor behaviors in vertebrates. However, many fish also actively exploit sediments. Because of their elongate body shape, anguilliform fishes are not only efficient swimmers but also very maneuverable. Consequently, many species live in complexly structured environments near the bottom and many are known to burrow into the sediment. To better understand burrowing and subsurface locomotion in anguilliform fish we provide descriptive kinematic data on subsurface locomotion in a burrowing eel (Pisodonophis boro) using videofluoroscopy. We also measured the maximal forces that can be exerted by this species during head-first and tail-first burrowing, and explored the implications of head-first burrowing on mechanical stress distribution in the skull. Our data show that P. boro uses lateral undulation to penetrate and move in sandy sediments under water. The kinematics of subsurface locomotion are different from those observed during swimming and are characterized by a very high slip factor. These observations differ considerably from recently published data in terrestrial sand-swimming lizards, and suggest that the sediment behaves like a solid rather than a frictional fluid. Finally, our finite element models show that the cranial shape and structure in the head-first burrowing P. boro is mechanically more suited for head-first burrowing than that of an obligate tail-first burrowing species, Heteroconger hassi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Herrel
- Département d'Ecologie et de Gestion de la Biodiversité, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, 57 rue Cuvier, Case postale 55, 75231, Paris Cedex 5, France
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Antwerpen, Belgium
| | - Hon Fai Choi
- Department of Biology, Ghent University (UGent), K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Elizabeth Dumont
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 221 Morrill Science Center, 611 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - Natalie De Schepper
- Department of Biology, Ghent University (UGent), K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Bieke Vanhooydonck
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Antwerpen, Belgium
| | - Peter Aerts
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Antwerpen, Belgium
| | - Dominique Adriaens
- Department of Biology, Ghent University (UGent), K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
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Kinematics of swimming in two burrowing anguilliform fishes. ZOOLOGY 2011; 114:78-84. [DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2010.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2010] [Revised: 10/09/2010] [Accepted: 10/15/2010] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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10
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Head morphology of the duckbill eel, Hoplunnis punctata (Regan, 1915; Nettastomatidae: Anguilliformes) in relation to jaw elongation. ZOOLOGY 2010; 113:148-57. [DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2009.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2009] [Revised: 09/04/2009] [Accepted: 09/13/2009] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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