Descriptions of Larvae of California
SUMIDA ET AL.: CALIFORNIA YELLOWTAIL AND OTHER CARANGID LARVAE CalCOFI Rep., Vol. XXVI, 1985 DESCRIPTIONS OF LARVAE OF CALIFORNIA YELLOWTAIL, SERlOLA LALANDI, AND THREE OTHER CARANGIDS FROM THE EASTERN TROPICAL PACIFIC: CHLOROSCOMBRUS ORQUETA, CARANX CABALLUS, AND CARANX SEXFASClATUS BARBARA Y. SUMIDA, ti. GEOFFREY MOSER. AND ELBERT H. AHLSTROM National Marine Fisheries Service Southwest Fisheries Center P.O. Box 271 La Jolla. California 92038 ABSTRACT southern California and Baja California, and it briefly Larvae are described for four species of jacks, fami- supported a commercial fishery during the 1950s ly Carangidae. Three of these, Seriola lalandi (Cali- (MacCall et al. 1976). Larvae of Seriola species from fornia yellowtail), Chloroscombrus orqueta, and other regions of the world have been described (see Carum caballus, occur in the CalCOFI region. A literature review in Laroche et al. 1984), but larvae of fourth species, Caranx sexfasciatus, occurs from eastern Pacific Seriola lalandi have not previously Mazatlan, Mexico, to Panama. Species are distin- been described’. This paper also describes larvae of guished by a combination of morphological, pigmen- two other carangids, Chloroscombrus orqueta and tary, and meristic characters. Larval body morphs Caranx caballus, occurring in the CalCOFI region, range from slender S. lalandi, with a relatively elon- and a third carangid, Caranx sexfasciatus, which gate gut, to deep-bodied C. sexfasciatus, with a occurs to the south. triangular gut mass. Pigmentation patterns are charac- teristic for early stages of each species, but all except MATERIALS AND METHODS C. orqueta become heavily pigmented in late stages of Larvae used in this work were obtained from var- development.
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