1. Biological Observations on the Mudskipper Pseudapocryptes elongatus in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam.
- Author
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Bucholtz, R. H., Meilvang, A. S., Cedhagen, T., Christensen, J. T., and Macintosh, D. J.
- Subjects
MUDFISHES ,POPULATION biology ,FISH sex ratio ,DIMORPHISM in animals - Abstract
Aspects of the population biology of the mudskipper, Pseudapocryptes elongatus, (Cuvier, 1816) were studied in Bac Lieu Province in the Lower Mekong Delta, Vietnam, including sex ratio, length–frequency distribution, sexual dimorphism, hepatosomatic index (HSI), female gonadosomatic index (GSI), gonad histology, fecundity and some observations on post-larvae and juveniles. In the population studied the sex ratio was skewed toward males. Females had a shorter mean length and a lower mean growth rate than males. No mature males or females were observed among mudskippers sampled in estuarine canals from February to May 2004 during the dry season. It is suggested that P. elongatus migrates to the sea to spawn later in the year after onset of the wet season. Salinity tolerance was evaluated in a 96-h experiment. This showed that P. elongatus is remarkably euryhaline and able to survive in salinities ranging from freshwater to 50 ppt. Gut content analysis revealed that P. elongatus is a herbivore, feeding mainly on pennate diatoms (93% of the diet). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2009
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