1. Directional Bilateral Asymmetry in Fish Otolith: A Potential Tool to Evaluate Stock Boundaries?
- Author
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Kélig Mahé, Kirsteen MacKenzie, Djamila Ider, Andrea Massaro, Oussama Hamed, Alba Jurado-Ruzafa, Patrícia Gonçalves, Aikaterini Anastasopoulou, Angelique Jadaud, Chryssi Mytilineou, Marine Randon, Romain Elleboode, Alaia Morell, Zouhir Ramdane, Joanne Smith, Karen Bekaert, Rachid Amara, Hélène de Pontual, and Bruno Ernande
- Subjects
otolith shape ,side effect ,Fourier descriptors ,stock identification ,Mediterranean Sea ,Atlantic Ocean ,Mathematics ,QA1-939 - Abstract
The otolith, found in both inner ears of bony fish, has mainly been used to estimate fish age. Another application that has been developing significantly in recent years, however, is the use of otolith shape as a tool for stock identification. Often, studies have directly used the shape asymmetry between the right and left otoliths. We tested the magnitude of directional asymmetry between the sagittal otoliths (left vs. right) of 2991 individuals according to their catch locations, and we selected species to evaluate whether directional asymmetry may itself be a tool to evaluate stock boundaries. Elliptical Fourier descriptors were used to describe the otolith shape. We used a flatfish, the common sole (Solea solea, n = 2431), from the eastern English Channel and the southern North Sea as well as a roundfish, the bogue (Boops boops, n = 560), from the Mediterranean Sea. Both species showed significant levels of directional asymmetry between the testing locations. The bogue otoliths showed significant asymmetry for only 5 out of 11 locations, with substantial separation between two large areas: the Algerian coast and the western part of the Italian coast. The sole otoliths showed significant asymmetry in the shape analysis (3.84–6.57%), suggesting a substantial separation between two large areas: the English and French parts of the English Channel and the southern North Sea. Consequently, directional bilateral asymmetry in otolith shape is a potential new method for stock identification.
- Published
- 2021
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