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Genetic and morphological differences among the three species of the genus Rastrelliger (Perciformes: Scombridae)

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Abstract

Genetic and morphological differences among the three species of the genus Rastrelliger, viz. Rastrelliger kanagurta, Rastrelliger brachysoma and Rastrelliger faughni were clarified on the basis of 150 specimens collected from Panay Island, the Philippines, thereby providing fundamental information for accurate species identification. Specimens were separated into three distinct clades on the Bayesian phylogenetic tree constructed from mitochondrial DNA sequences, which largely corresponded to R. kanagurta, R. brachysoma and R. faughni according to the number of gill rakers and body depth. These results indicated that they were reproductively isolated, separate species. Further morphological differences were evident among the three clades, including separation by principal component analysis on 29 measurements. Apart from such interspecific divergences, intraspecific variations of several morphological characters relative to body size [fork length (FL)] were revealed for each species. Despite a slight increase in the number and the length of gill rakers with growth, R. faughni was invariably distinguished from the other two species by fewer and shorter gill rakers throughout the entire body size range. In stark contrast, some larger (FL > 200 mm) R. kanagurta individuals attained a proportionately deeper body that had been thought to be characteristic of R. brachysoma. Likewise, some smaller individuals of R. brachysoma (FL < 160 mm) were relatively shallow-bodied, and the body depth relative to FL was similar to that previously reported throughout the range of R. kanagurta. These results underpin the importance of considering ontogenetic variations when accurately identifying species based on morphological characters. Type specimens of six nominal species available in the present study that have been generally recognized as synonyms of R. kanagurta were examined, being shown to be identical with specimens considered here as R. kanagurta. In addition, intraspecific genetic variation of each species was briefly discussed in relation to hypothesized mechanisms that may have driven the lineage diversifications of marine organisms in the Indo-Pacific Ocean.

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Acknowledgments

We express our sincere gratitude to G. Ogihara, M. Matsunuma, M. Meguro, (formerly KAUM), K. Koeda, T. Yoshida, S. Tashiro, B. Jeong (KAUM), and Y. Ogata (formerly Research Institute for Humanity and Nature) for curatorial assistance and sampling of specimens, K. Koeda, T. Yoshida, S. Tashiro, B. Jeong, K. Eguchi (KAUM), and Y. Kanade (formerly KAUM) for their kind hospitality during the first author’s visit to their institution, Y. Fukui (KAUM) for help in data acquisition, T. Yoshino (Okinawa Prefecture, Japan), Y. Iwatsuki, R. Miki (Miyazaki University), and K. Koeda for providing access to literature. We convey our special gratitude to R. de Ruiter (RMNH), S. Dorow, and T. Alpermann (SMF) who facilitated the third author’s visits to examine specimens, P. Pruvost, R. Causse, Z. Gabsi, C. Ferrara, and P. Béarez (MNHN) for their assistance during the 10th author’s stay in their museum, M. McGrouther (AMS) and S. Morrison (WAM) for loans of specimens. Comments from two anonymous reviewers substantially improved the manuscript. This study was supported in part by Grants-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B: 26840131) and Scientific Research (C: 26450265) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Tokyo, Japan, the JSPS Asian Core Program, “Establishment of Research and Education Network on Coastal Marine Science in Southeast Asia”, the “Biological Properties of Biodiversity Hotspots in Japan” project of the National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan, and the “Coastal Area Capability Enhancement in Southeast Asia” project of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto, Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, 457-4 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto, 603-8047, Japan

    Nozomu Muto, Ryo Kakioka, Hirohiko Takeshima & Satoshi Ishikawa

  2. College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 5023, Miagao, Iloilo, Philippines

    Ulysses B. Alama, Armi May T. Guzman, Ramon Cruz, Arnold Gaje, Rex Ferdinand M. Traifalgar & Ricardo P. Babaran

  3. The Kagoshima University Museum, 1-21-30 Korimoto, Kagoshima, 890-0065, Japan

    Harutaka Hata & Hiroyuki Motomura

  4. School of Marine Science and Technology, Tokai University, 3-20-1 Orido, Shimizu, Shizuoka, 424-8610, Japan

    Fumihito Muto

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  1. Nozomu Muto
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Correspondence to Nozomu Muto.

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This article was registered in the Official Register of Zoological Nomenclature (ZooBank) as AA527EDF-A9DC-45DB-94FA-4A924B9E29CE.

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Muto, N., Alama, U.B., Hata, H. et al. Genetic and morphological differences among the three species of the genus Rastrelliger (Perciformes: Scombridae). Ichthyol Res 63, 275–287 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-015-0498-z

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