Abstract
The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), a food resource in Korea, is a highly voracious predator, designated as an invasive species. It is both diurnal and nocturnal, with high adaptability and reproducibility. Since the predation characteristics are associated with sensitive dynamic visual acuity, we examined the ocular structure of the largemouth bass to investigate the association between photoreceptor cells and feeding behavior. Furthermore, the comparison of the prey-tracking ability of M. salmoides with that of other predatory fish (Coreoperca herzi and Lepomis macrochirus) with similar ecological characteristics revealed the structure and arrangement of photoreceptor cells, typical of a predatory fish in M. salmoides. The double and single cone cells in the retina were present in the regular mosaic patterns of the quadrilateral units, with four double cone cells surrounding a single cone cell. The photoreceptor cells, i.e., the rod, single, and double cone cells of M. salmoides, were smaller (2.3 ± 0.2, 3.82 ± 0.2, and 7.5 ± 0.2 μm, respectively) than those of other species (3.1 ± 0.24, 6.6 ± 0.5, and 11.3 ± 0.4 μm in diameter, respectively, in C. herzi). A smaller diameter of cone cells allows for a high-density arrangement of visual cells, possibly affecting the dynamic visual acuity for prey tracking.
Highlights
Received: 29 November 2021The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) is an invasive species that was introduced to Korea as a food resource in 1973
Since the density and presence of various types of cone cells can influence the level of movement recognition in all directions, it is speculated that the arrangement, density, and diversity of cone cells are associated with high visual acuity [14,25]
We have previously reported the structure of photoreceptor cells in C. herzi and L. macrochirus, obtained through histological observation
Summary
The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) is an invasive species that was introduced to Korea as a food resource in 1973. The largemouth bass is a diurnal species that feeds during the day, predation pressure appears high when preys gather in the morning and evening [1,2]. This species rapidly became widely distributed throughout freshwater systems, and its strong predation and competition has resulted in the decline and displacement of the native species [2,5,6,7]. Even though the photoreceptor system plays a crucial role in invasion, very limited information is available on the photoreceptor cells of largemouth bass [8]
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