Siberian Whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus pidschian, Coregonidae) from the Anabar River: Morphogenetic Structure of the Population

Abstract

Data on the morphology, biology, and genetics of two ecological forms of pidschian-like whitefishes of the genus Coregonus, corresponding to the descriptions of East Siberian whitefish, C. lavaretus pidschian natio brachymystax, and glacial-plain whitefish, C. lavaretus pidschian natio glacialis, from the Anabar River of western Sakha (Yakutia) Republic (Russia), are presented. According to meristic characters, no differences are found between these ecological forms, while on the basis of plastic traits and occupied ecological niches these whitefishes differ substantially. We demonstrate that, on the basis of the sequences of the ND1 gene of the mtDNA, the East Siberian whitefishes are only slightly different from the whitefishes from the lower Ob River and Lake Teletskoye (Upper the Ob River basin), and probably have a common origin with them. Glacial-plain whitefishes from the Anabar River have a common origin with whitefishes from the water bodies of the Taimyr Peninsula and represent a complex of forms/species.