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Difference analysis of the left and right otoliths of Collichthys lucidus in different functional areas using Characterabs_deviance. ** indicates significance at alpha = 0.05
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The fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of fish otoliths can reflect the difference in the growth and development of fish in sea areas greatly affected by environmental pressure, thus enabling the assessment of different habitats. In this study, using 113 Collichthys lucidus samples collected from different functional areas (estuary area, aquaculture area,...
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Coilia nasus is an important fish resource in the Yangtze River, and the Yangtze River Estuary is a crucial migration pathway for it. In this study, we used otolith microchemistry to analyze the strontium/calcium (Sr/Ca) ratios and Sr contents in the sagitta otolith of C. nasus from the south branch (SB) and north branch (NB) of the Yangtze River E...
Citations
... The otolith is markedly species-specific and continues to grow throughout the life of the fish [5,6]. Otoliths identify fish species but also have the ability to record life histories and reflect environmental pressures at different stages of their lives [7][8][9]. There are three pairs of otoliths, the lapillus, sagitta, and asteriscus, which connect to sensory cells (macula) in the utriculus, sacculus, and lagena, respectively [2,4,10]. ...
This research aimed to determine and compare the otolith mass asymmetry (OMA) of Squalius sp. species sampled from ten different freshwater sources in Samsun province. In this context, fish samples obtained from Abdal Stream, Akçay Stream, Engiz Stream, Istavloz Stream, Kaynatma Stream, Mert River, Taşkelik Stream, Terme Stream, Tersakan Stream, Yeşilpınar Stream. The difference between the right and left otoliths were found to be statistically significant in the Istavloz Stream and Tersakan Stream for the asteriscus and in the Abdal Stream for the lapillus (p0.05). This is the first study in which OMA and absolute otolith mass asymmetry of Squalius sp. living in the freshwaters of Samsun province were investigated, and their relationships with fish length were evaluated.
... As a main objective, teleost fish has some organs or tissues (e.g. the number of gill or fin, the measurement of bone) to study FA, but the otolith is suitably considered to be an important entry point for the study of FA in fish due to its relatively stable calcium carbonate structure in the inner eardrum labyrinth (Geladakis et al., 2021;Jawad and Mahé, 2022). With the development of otolith morphology research and the maturity of analytical technology, there are an increasing number of studies on the relationship between the otolith FA and environmental pressure (Jawad and Mahé, 2022;Jawad et al., 2023;Gao et al., 2023). However, the study of otolith FA as a reflection of environmental pressure among different habitats is still incipient, especially in artificial habitats that have attracted much attention in recent years. ...
... This may be related to the living habits of different species or the different living environments of the same species. On the one hand, as described in our previous study, otolith FA varies irregularly with the body length of C. lucidus, a migratory fish (Gao et al., 2023). The otolith FA of sedentary fish is relatively stable with body length compared with that of migratory fish (Delerue Ricard et al., 2019;Bouriga et al., 2021). ...
Since the 20th century, as research on the fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of otoliths in sedentary fish has deepened in a gradual way, many scholars have focused on exploring the ability of their otolith FA to indicate different environmental pressures. In this study, a typical benthic fish – Cynoglossus joyneri from three artificial habitats (artificial reef area (ARA), oyster reef area (ORA) and kelp cultivation area (NCA)) and a natural habitat (natural area (NA)) of Haizhou Bay (Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, China) was selected as the research object, of which four otolith characters (length, width, perimeter, and area) were used to detect FA based on the squared coefficient of asymmetry variation (CV2a). The results showed that the CV2a of otolith in C. joyneri tended to decrease as their body length increased. In terms of indicating environmental pressure, the CV2a of otolith length in NA was significantly higher than those in the other area (P<0.05); the CV2a of otolith width in NA was significantly higher than those in ARA and ORA (P<0.05), and those in NCA were significantly higher than those in ORA (P<0.05); and the CV2a of otolith area in NA was significantly higher than those in ARA (P<0.05), and those in NCA were significantly higher than those in ORA (P<0.05). Generally, the otolith FA of C. joyneri in artificial habitats has lower CV2a than that in natural habitats, indicating that the environmental pressure in artificial habitats is lower than that in natural habitats. We believe that C. joyneri can serve as an indicator species for environmental pressure between different habitats, which could be considered as a groundbreaking milestone in the study of otolith FA in fish. The findings not only advance the ability to assess environmental pressure in sedentary fish, which provide new insights into evaluating environmental pressure in artificial and natural habitats.
Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) in fish otoliths is a measure of subtle, random differences between paired otoliths, indicating deviations from perfect symmetry due to environmental influences during development. It reflects variations in growth and development within aquatic environments subjected to significant environmental pressures. In our study, we examined 238 Larimichthys polyactis from Haizhou Bay (Jiangsu, China), calculating the Asymmetric Square Coefficient of Variation (CV2a) for four otolith characters: length, width, perimeter, and area of the left and right lateral sagittal otoliths. Our results showed that otolith width had the lowest CV2a (1.78), whereas otolith perimeter had the highest (4.52). Notably, the CV2a for otolith length and width in fish with a body length of less than 110 mm was significantly higher than in fish exceeding 150 mm (P<0.05). However, we observed no obvious pattern in the CV2a changes across different habitats for each otolith character, except that a significant difference in CV2a for otolith width was detected between the NA and the ORA (P<0.05). We hypothesize that ontogenetic variations in L. polyactis otolith FA are associated with the species' feeding habits and habitat preferences. The spatial sensitivity of otolith FA to environmental pressures remains an area requiring further investigation. Future research will expand our dataset to include otolith FA from additional Sciaenidae species, aiming to enhance the accuracy and reliability of environmental pressure assessments in coastal waters.
Fluctuating Asymmetry (FA) in fish otoliths is an indicator of arbitrarily tiny variations between bilateral otolith characters, and it serves as an effective indicator of growth and developmental differences due to environmental conditions. Due to their unique resident traits, the Coilia brachygnathus can provide a potential insight to the environmental pressure reflected by its otolith FA. In this study, 228 C. brachygnathus from Changhu Lake were examined, assessing the Asymmetric Square Coefficient of Variation (CV2a) across four characters: the length, width, perimeter, and area of the left and right lateral sagittal otoliths. Results showed that otolith length exhibited the lowest CV2a, while otolith perimeter displayed the highest. Although no clear pattern emerged in the change of CV2a with increasing body length for each otolith character, the CV2a of otolith width within the 160–180 mm body length group was significantly higher than that in the 120–140 and 220–240 mm groups. Generally, otolith CV2a within the middle and upper lake sections surpassed that in the open water sections of the lower reaches. Our findings indicated that ontogenetically, variations in C. brachygnathus otolith FA are linked to its feeding and habitat preferences, while the spatial responsiveness of otolith FA to environmental pressure warrants further exploration. Future studies will encompass the collection of otolith FA data from additional Coilia species, with particular emphasis on distinguishing migratory and sedentary Coilia, ultimately enhancing the reliability and precision of environmental pressure assessments in inland waters.
