Interpretation of the otolith structures in viviparous blenny Zoarces viviparus

Abstract

The otolith structure in viviparous blenny (Zoarces viviparus) was studied in fish of varying age and sizes collected in the Kattegat and in the Baltic Sea. We concluded that two major events in the early development of blenny were reflected in their otolith structure. Close to the core of the otolith, a thin hyaline ring structure forms at hatching in September-October. An additional, much broader, hyaline zone is formed during the period after birth in midwinter. In older fish, so-called 'growth zones', consisting of opaque material, were found to form in spring and summer. In August, the deposed otolith material changed to a hyaline character, resulting in a hyaline,'winter zone' growth during autumn and winter. No effect of age or sex on the annual formation pattern could be detected.

Published in

Journal of Applied Ichthyology
1997, Volume: 13, number: 3, pages: 137-142 Publisher: BLACKWELL WISSENSCHAFTS-VERLAG GMBH

UKÄ Subject classification

Structural Biology
Other Biological Topics


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.1997.tb00113.x

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/42021