Characters Useful in Identification of Pelagic Marine Fish Eggs
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AHLSTROM AND MOSER IDENTIFICATION OF PELAGIC MARINE FISH EGGS CalCOFI Rep., Vol. XXI, 1980 CHARACTERS USEFUL IN IDENTIFICATION OF PELAGIC MARINE FISH EGGS ELBERT H. AHLSTROM~AND H. GEOFFREY MOSER National Oceanic and Atmosperic Administration National Marine Fisheries Sewice Southwest Fisheries Center La Jolla, CA 92038 ABSTRACT huevecillos pelagicos son menos de 1.O mm de dihetro, Characters of importance in identifying pelagic marine el 30% son de entre 1.0 y 1.5 mm, el 15% son de entre fish eggs can be divided into two categories: characters 1.5 y 2.0 mm, y alrededor del 14% son de mas de 2.0 mm independent of the embryo and characters associated de dihetro. with the developing embryo. Characters independent of El corion es normalmente suave, per0 puede estar the embryo would include egg shape, egg size, character distintamente ornamentado (red poligonal, espinas, in- of chorion, character of yolk, presence or absence of oil flaciones, etc.). El espacio perivitelino es normalmente globules, and width of perivitelline space. estrecho, per0 es ancho en 10s huevecillos de algunos Planktonic marine fish eggs are usually globular in grupos primitivos de teleosteos (anguiliformes y muchos shape and range in size between 0.5 and 5.5 mm. We clupkidos). El vitelo puede ser segmentado u homogeneo. estimate that over 40% of the kinds of pelagic eggs are Gotas oleosas varian en nherodesde ninguna hasta una under 1.O mm in diameter, 30% are between 1.O and 1.5 o varias. Como 25% de 10s huevecillos de peces pelagicos mm, 15% are between 1.5 and 2.0 mm, and that about carecen de la gota oleosa, el 15% tienen de dos a varias 14% are over 2.0 mm in diameter. gotas oleosas, y el 60% tienen una sola gota oleosa. The chorion is usually smooth, but can be variously Los caracteres asociados con embriones incluirian ornamented (polygonal network, spines, swellings, etc.). patrones de pigmentacion, nherode miomeros, longitud The perivitelline space is usually narrow but is wide in del intestino, tip0 de pliegue de la aleta, posicion del cora- eggs of some primitive teleost groups (Anguilliformesand zon, estado de desarrollo en el cierre del blastoporo y el many clupeids). The yolk can be segmented or homogen- tiempo de eclosion, la forma del sac0 vitelino en la ultima eous. Oil globules range in number from none or one to fase de 10s huevecillos y las larvas recien eclosionadas, many. About 25% of pelagic fish eggs lack an oil globule, la posicion de la( s) gota( s) oleosa(s) en el sac0 vitelino, 15% have two to many oil globulds, and 60% have a y caracteres embrionicos especiales tales como las rayas single oil globule. de aleta elongadas que se forman en huevecillos traquip Characters associated with embryos would include teros. pigment patterns, number of myomeres, length of gut, type of fin fold, position of heart, state of development at INTRODUCTION blastopore closure and at hatching, shape of yolk sac on Oviparous marine teleosts extrude their eggs in a var- late-stage eggs and newly hatched larvae, position of oil iety of ways. Many inshore species have demersal eggs, globule(s) in the yolk sac, and special embryonic charac- which are often attached to rocks, shells, or seaweed. ters such as the elongated fin rays that form in trachi- Some build nests, and eggs are guarded by the male pteroid eggs. during incubation. Some demersal eggs are initially re- leased in the pelagic zone, fertilized, and then sink. The RESUMEN chorions of these eggs are characteristically mucilag- Los caracteres importantes para la identificacion de inous, permitting eggs to cling to bottom objects or to each huevecillos de peces marinos pelagicos pueden ser divi- other. Pelagic spawners usually produce separate isolated didos en dos categorias: caracteres independientes del eggs, but the eggs of some species can be aggregated in embrion, y caracteres asociados con el embrion en desa- various ways. They may be aggregated into large gelatin- rrollo. Los caracteres independientes del embrion incluirian ous masses or balloons (as in most scorpaenid genera, and la forma del huevecillo, el tamaiio del huevecillo, el carac- in the ophidiid genus BrotuZa) or can be spawned in gel- ter del corion, el caracter del vitelo, la presencia o ausen- atinous ribbon-like sheets (Lophius antennarius). An- cia de gotas oleosas, y la anchura del espacio perivitelino. other method of aggregation is attachment of eggs to each Huevecillos de peces marinos planctonicos son gene- other by filaments, a form of aggregation found in most ralmente de forma globular y varian en tamaiio entre 0.5 exoccetoid fishes and in many atherinid fishes. In our ex- y 5.5 mm. Calculamos que mas de 40% de 10s tipos de perience except for eggs of the scomberesocid fish, Colo- ISee memoria on page 5 of this volume Inquines concerning ths paper may be directed to the Zabis saira, aggregated eggs are seldom taken in plankton Junlor author hauls. The number and arrangement of chorionic fila- [Manuscnpt received 22 January 1980 I 121 AHLSTROM AND MOSER IDENTIFICATION OF PELAGIC MARINE FISH EGGS CalCOFI Rep., Vol. XXI, 1980 ments can differ strikingly among species and genera of exocoetoid fishes and provide useful characters for identification. 40~35 We are primarily interested in identifying pelagic eggs that are collected on ichthyoplankton surveys for the pur- pose of determining distribution and spawning biomass of target species. There are numerous contributions that de- scribe pelagic eggs of marine fishes in order to facilitate their identification in plankton collections. The majority of such contributions are based on rearing artifically fertilized eggs from known parents or rearing mixtures of eggs collected in plankton hauls through both the em- bryonic and larval periods to sizes that can be positively 051- 101- 151- 201- 251- 301- 351- 401- 451- 501- identified. Other contributors have used the historical 060 I IO 160 210 260 310 360 410 460 510 method of identifying eggs collected in ichthyoplankton EGG DIAMETER (mm) surveys by working backwards from late-stage larva: or Figure 1. Frequency of egg diameter for 288 species with pelagic eggs, juveniles that can be positively identified to earlier stage compiled from Mito (1961-63),Marinaro (1971), Robertson (1975),Russell larva: and ultimately to yolk-sac larva: and eggs. (1 976) and original data SUMMARY OF CHARACTERS of some marine fishes in other families are not truly spherical but rather are somewhat off-round, as in the Plates 1 and 2 scomberesocid, Scomberesox saurus (Ahlstrom 1972) The characters of importance in identification of pelag- and in several ostraciontid species (Watson and Leis ic marine eggs are the following; 1974; Plate 1). 1) egg shape: spherical or otherwise; 2) egg size: pelagic marine fish eggs range in size from Egg Size ca 0.5 to ca 5.5 mm; Pelagic fish eggs range from 0.5 mm in diameter to 3)chorion: ornamented or smooth, type of ornamenta- about 5.5 mm (Figure 1). Among the smallest marine fish tion, thickness; eggs are those of certain bothid flatfishes and labrids, 4) inner membrane: presence or absence and location whereas the eggs of the pleuronectid flatfish, Reinhard- tius hippoglossoides (4.0 to 4.5 mm size range), and a within egg; muraenid eel from the Mediterranean (ca 5.5 mm) are the 5) yolk: segmented or homogeneous, nature of seg- largest known. The majority of pelagic fish eggs are in the mentation; size range 0.6 to 1.6 mm. In some fishes, larger sized eggs 6)perivitelline space: width; result from the possession of a wide perivitelline space, as 7) oil globules: number and size; for example in some clupeids, most Anguilliformes, some 8)embryonic characters: state of development at blas- stomiatoid fishes, and the pleuronectid flatfish genus topore closure, sequence of appearance and Hippoglossoides (Plate 2). The yolk mass within some changes in pigmentation, pigment patternat hatch- large eggs may be no larger than in eggs of less than 1.5- ing, stage of development on late-stage embryos mm diameter that have a narrow perivitelline space. of various anatomical features such as eyes, Some fishes that spawn larger sized eggs with the yolk mouth, fins, digestive tract, position of anus, and mass almost filling the egg would include several pleuro- nectid flatfishes, most trachipteroid fishes, most exo- heart. coetoids that spawn separate pelagic eggs, various tetra- odontiform fishes that spawn pelagic eggs, several argen- DESCRIPTION OF CHARACTERS tinoid fishes, and some trichiurids and uranoscopids. This Egg Shape list could be made moderately extensive but, even so, Planktonic eggs are predominantly spherical, but there would probably not include more than 10% of the kinds of are some interesting exceptions. The engraulids afford the pelagic marine fish eggs. most striking exceptions; the eggs of most anchovies are ellipsoidal. The eggs of several species of engraulids Chorion The outermost structure of the egg is variously called approach the globular shape (Thryssa mystax, Delsman the egg capsule, egg shell, vitelline membrane, egg mem- 193 1; Anchoa mitchilli, Kuntz 19 14; and Setapinna brane, or chorion. Although most fish eggs have smooth phasa, Jones and Menon 1952). Delsman (1931) de- unornamented chorions, it can be variously and some- scribed eggs of several species of Stolephorus that had a times elaborately ornamented in some species. Such or- terminal knob at one end of the chorion. Planktonic eggs namentation can occur in several orders, including the 122 AHLSTROM AND MOSER: IDENTIFICATION OF PELAGIC MARINE FISH EGGS CalCOFI Rep., Vol. XXI, 1980 Salmoniformes, Myctophiformes, Gadiformes, Pleure from Hawaii (Watson and Leis 1974; Plates 1 and 2). nectiformes, Atheriniformes, Gobiesociformes, and Clu- Instead of having ornamentation on the outer surface peiformes (Rass 1972).