Abstract
A normal hermaphrodite Tortonese’s stingray, Dasyatis tortonesei Capapé, 1975, captured in the brackish Lagoon of Bizerte (north-eastern Tunisia) is described in this note. It was a large specimen measuring 685 mm total length, 350 mm disk width, and 2190 g of the total body mass. The specimen externally presented medial cuspidate tooth rows on both jaws, and two claspers were present, that were rigid and calcified although shorter than those observed in normal specimens. The dissection of the abdominal cavity revealed on each side, an ovary normally developed that contained yolked oocytes, a complete genital tract and an uterus less developed than in normal adult. Conversely the testes were rudimentary, both Leydig’s glands were developed and a complete, slightly convoluted, male duct existed on the left side only. In all, 13 cases of normal (4) and abnormal (9) hermaphroditism, including the Tunisian D. tortonesei, have been found in batoid species, to date, confirming that the phenomenon is very rare among these chondrichthyan fishes.
Highlights
Laboratoire de Bio-surveillance de l’Environnement, Unité d’Hydrobiologie Littorale et Limnique, Université de Carthage, Faculté des Sciences, Zarzouna, 7021 Bizerte, Tunisia
The Tortonese’s stingray, Dasyatis tortonesei Capapé, 1975, was described from specimens caught off the Tunisian coast (Capapé 1975, 1977)
The analysis of the medial tooth rows on both jaws of the abnormal specimen showed that they were the typical cuspidate teeth of males, described in dasyatid species (Mc Eachran and Capapé 1984)
Summary
The analysis of the medial tooth rows on both jaws of the abnormal specimen showed that they were the typical cuspidate teeth of males, described in dasyatid species (Mc Eachran and Capapé 1984) Both claspers were present, rigid and calcified but shorter than those observed in normal specimens (Capapé 1983); their distal end was not elongate and sharp but broadly rounded, entirely covered by skin; no scar was visible; the teeth were probably functional (Fig. 4). The studied specimen exhibited, male secondary characters such as cuspidate teeth and claspers It possessed developed female organs and yolked oocytes of ovulatory size; so it could be considered a functioning adult female. The male reproductive organs are consistent with a sub-adult male, totally developed in the left side only, even if the structure of both claspers are characteristic of an adult
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