109 Indian J. Fish., 58(1) : 109-112, 2011 Note Case of leucism in the spadenose shark, Scoliodon laticaudus (Müller and Henle, 1838) from Mangalore, Karnataka S. VEENA, SUJITHA THOMAS 1, S. G. RAJE 1 AND RAVEENDRA DURGEKAR 2 Visakhapatnam Regional Centre of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Visakhapatnam - 530 003 Andhra Pradesh, India 1 Mumbai Research Centre of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Mumbai - 400 061, Maharashtra, India 2 Mangalore Research Centre of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Mangalore - 575 001, Karnataka, India e- mail: veenashettigar@yahoo.co.in ABSTRACT The present paper reports the first case of leucism in the spadenose shark, Scoliodon laticaudus from India. This report is based on the study of a single specimen of S. laticaudus caught by a commercial trawler off Mangalore coast. Photographs were taken and measurements recorded using vernier calipers. Partial reduction in pigmentation and no other morphometric differences were seen between the specimen studied and other normal spadenose sharks. Conclusion of leucism in the specimen was done based on the partial lack of integumentary pigments and normal eye colour. Keywords: Leucism, Mangalore, Partial albinism, Scoliodon laticaudus, Spadenose shark. Albinism is a hereditary lack of pigmentation caused by an enzyme deficiency involving the metabolism of melanin during prenatal development and may involve the entire body or a part of the body (Boncinelli, 1998). A new term leucism, has been introduced to animal biology to describe reptiles and amphibians with abnormal skin pigmentation and normal eye colour (Bechtel, 1995) and recently it has also been used in ichthyology (Steven, 2002). The term leucism, more prominently used within the herpetological discipline, is suggested as a more apt description for previously reported color aberrations in elasmobranchs and hence it is felt apt to use this term for partial albinism observed in the present study. The present communication reports the first record of leucism (partial albinism) in a specimen of Scoliodon laticaudus (Müller and Henle, 1838) from Mangalore, south-west coast of India along with details of comparative account of this specimen with other normal specimens of the same species. A specimen of spadenose shark (S. laticaudus) was landed in a commercial trawler operating in the 0 - 60 m deep fishing grounds, off Mangalore (Arabian Sea) in November 2006. The specimen was collected and brought to the laboratory where it was identified using FAO identification sheets (Fischer and Bianchi, 1984). The morphometric characteristics of the specimen were noted using vernier calipers. Body measurements were made according to Compagno (1984). All the measurements were taken after fixation in formalin. The characteristics of normal specimens of the same sex and equivalent length, caught within the same area were also collected for comparative analysis. In order to quantify the albino surface, the specimen was photographed and four pictures (dorsal, ventral, left and right sides) of the fish were used and the white patches were quantified using the same. The landed specimen of S. laticaudus was a male, measuring 50 cm in total length and weighing 430 g. The morphometric measurements noted are given in Table 1. It had white patches, clearly visible on the dorsal side from tip of snout to the caudal fin tip (Fig. 1a-d). On the lateral sides, only some parts near the head region and caudal end had white markings (Fig. 1b). The first and second dorsal fins showed slight discolouration on anterior ends whereas the pectoral, pelvic and anal fins did not have any change in colour. There was no discolouration on the entire ventral side (Fig. 1c). The eyes showed normal retinal pigmentation (Fig. 1e). Denticles were present which confirmed that the observed white patches were not caused due to denticles being removed during the trawl process. Hence, it was concluded that the specimen was a partial albino. The normal body colouration of spadenose shark is bronze grey above and white below. The fins sometimes are darker than the body with no other conspicuous markings. Other than partial albinism, this shark appeared normal in all other respects when compared to other normally pigmented specimens of the same species and of same sex caught along the same region. Leucism has been commonly reported in teleosts worldwide (Follet and Dempster, 1976; Dingerkus et al., 110 S. Veena et al. Table 1. Morphometric characteristics of the albino shark, Scoliodem laticandus landed at Mangalore Morphometric characters Albino shark Wt (g) 430 TL (mm) 500 SL (mm) 383 FL (mm) 423 Head length (mm) 115 Snout length (mm) 43.6 Eye diameter (mm) 7.9 Post-orbital length (mm) 62.2 Inter-orbital length (mm) 38.7 Inter narial length (mm) 34.4 Pectoral fin length (mm) 50.1 Dorsal I fin length (mm) 56.4 Dorsal II fin length (mm) 23.0 Ventral fin length (mm) 24.1 Anal fin length (mm) 22.1 Pectoral fin base length (mm) 29.9 Dorsal I fin base length (mm) 45.6 Dorsal II fin base length (mm) 13.3 Ventral fin base length (mm) 24.9 Anal fin base length (mm) 36.2 Clasper length (mm) 56.9 Caudal peduncle length (mm) 21.0 Upper caudal fin length (mm) 117.0 Lower caudal fin length (mm) 44.3 Gill slit I length (mm) 18.7 Gill slit V length (mm) 13.1 Body depth before 1st dorsal (mm) 59.9 Head depth (mm) 45.8 Sex Male Maturity Mature Date of collection 15.11.06 Place Mangalore 1991; Béarez, 2002) and also occurs among Chondrichtheans. In fact, partial or total albinism has been described in different species of cartilaginous fishes, both in rays (Traquair, 1893; Schwartz, 1959; Joseph, 1961; Nakaya, 1973; Schwartz and Safrit, 1977; Jesus-Roldand, 1990; Braihim et al., 1998) and in sharks Sphyrna lewini (McKenzie, 1970); Mustelus californicus (Talent, 1973); Mustelus californicus (Cohen, 1973); Stegostoma varium (= fasciatum) (Nakaya, 1973); Triakis semifasciata (Follett, 1976); Nebrius concolor (Taniuchi and Yanagisawa, 1987); Carcharhinus amboinensis (McKay and Beinssen, 1987:1988); Carcharadon carcharias (Smale and Heemstra, 1997); Mustelus schimitti (Teixeira and Fig. 1. Leucism in Scoliodon laticaudus; a. Partial lack of pigmentation seen in dorsal view; b. Partial lack of pigmentation seen in lateral view; c. Ventral view showing no discolouration; d. Discolouration in tail region; e. Eye showing normal pigmentation Araújo, 2002); Chiloscyllium plagiosum (Steven, 2002); Leopard shark (Alistair, 2002); Centroscymnus coelolepis (Deynat, 2003); Heterodontus portusjacksonii (Clarke, 2004); Brier shark (McGrouther, 2004); Dalatias licha (Bottaro et al., 2005); Notorhynchus cepedianus, Nebrius ferigineus, Cetorhinus maximus and Galeocerdo cuvier (Reef Quest Centre for Shark Research, 2006). From the Indian waters, complete albinism has been reported in a cat fish Arius caelatus (Valenciennes) by Pillai and Somvanshi (1979) and by Das et al. (2006) and in sharks by Gopolan (1971). It is learnt from the Reef Quest Centre for Shark Research (2006) that relative darkness or lightness of a given shark species may vary enormously among individuals. Dusky smoothhound (Mustelus canis) can gradually change their color after moving from one habitat to another and blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) may temporarily lose virtually all their pigmentation during “whitings”, which may be due to blooms of shelled protozoans called “coccolithophores” (Reef Quest Centre for Shark research, Leucism in Scoliodon laticaudus 111 2006). But true albinos seem to be very rare among sharks. Snow white colour makes them highly visible to both prey and predators, so it is unlikely they would survive long (Reef Quest Centre for Shark research, 2006). Camhi, M., Fowler, S., Musick, J., Bräutigam,A. and Fordham, S. 1998. Sharks and their relatives: ecology and conservation. Occasional Papers IUCN Species Survival Commision, 20: 1-39. Another possible reason for the low frequency of this alteration could be simply based on the relatively small presence of the cartilaginous fish in nature (Bottaro et al., 2005). In fact, chondrichtheans are top predators and so they are normally present with low values of abundance (Bonfil, 1994); furthermore they are characterised as having slow growth, being longlived, maturing at a late age and having low fecundity, resulting in low rates of population increase (Camhi et al., 1998). Clarke Matt. 2004. Rare albino shark caught. Available online at http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/ item.php?news=242. This is the first report of leucism described in Scoliodon laticaudus from India. We prefer to define it as a case of leucism due to the colour irregularity, partial depigmentation of the body surface and normal retinal pigmentation. Acknowledgements The authors thank Dr. G. Syda Rao, Director, CMFRI for his encouragements. They thank Dr. C. Muthiah, former Scientist-in-Charge, CMFRI, Mangalore for constant encouragement and for providing facilities for the study. The authors would also like to thank Dr. P. Kaladharan, Dr. Prathibha Rohit, Anoop. 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