Abstract
Organisms can adapt to habitat conditions that ensure their survival. Habitat separation can lead to different populations of body shape during the phenotypic plasticity process. Both traditional and modern (geometric) morphology are being used in fish population studies. In this study, the body shape differences between Garra rufa (Heckel) populations captured in the Jarrahi River (from the Tigris Basin) were investigated using traditional and geometric morphometric methods. The samples were captured from the Rostam Abad, Aghajari and Behbahan tributaries and transferred to the laboratory. For the traditional morphometric analysis, 10 meristic characters and 19 morphometric characters were measured. Geometric morphological information was extracted using 13 landmark points on left side photographs of individual fish. According to the results of the traditional morphometric analysis, there were differences between the three populations in meristic (lateral line scales, predorsal scales, circamucaudal scales) and morphometric (14 of 19 characters) traits. In the geometric morphometric analysis, the major part of the shape variation is due to landmark points in the head region and the dorsal fin base, with the anal fin and caudal peduncle being the most conservative body regions. The populations had significant differences in body shape with populations from Aghajari and Behbahan tributaries being most similar and the Rostam Abad population was different from the two other populations.
Highlights
Organisms can adapt to environmental conditions that ensure their survival
The aim of this study is to investigate the body shape diversity in Garra rufa population(s) in the Jarrahi River using two methods, geometric morphometric and traditional morphometric methods
The traditional and geometric morphometric data of Garra rufa specimens used in this study led to the identification of different morphological types
Summary
During the anatomical development history and ontogeny of each organism, the formation of its body shape is strongly influenced by the environmental conditions, and fish, like other organisms can show a similar ability (Nacua et al, 2010). Fish experience different environmental conditions throughout their life that can affect various traits including their body shape (Costa and Cataudella, 2007). Habitat separation can lead to the formation of different populations of fish species during the phenotypic plasticity process, due to various environmental factors (Wootton, 1990). Morphological characteristics of fish are very sensitive to environmental factors such as substrate type, water flow, vegetation, competition, predation and availability of food sources (Nicieza, 1995)
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