Habitat-Associated Morphological Divergence of Gasterosteus aculeatus in the Southern Caspian Sea Basin
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RESEARCH PAPER
Habitat-Associated Morphological Divergence of Gasterosteus aculeatus in the Southern Caspian Sea Basin Atta Mouludi-Saleh1
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Soheil Eagderi1
Received: 27 June 2020 / Accepted: 2 October 2020 Ó Shiraz University 2020
Abstract Habitat-associated morphological divergence of the three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus populations was investigated in the southern Caspian Sea basin using landmark-based geometric morphometric method to understand the population structure of this invasive species. A total of 127 specimens were collected from three stations, including the Babol River estuary (center), Gomishan Wetland (east) and the Gisum Coast (west). The left side of each specimen was photographed and 23 landmarks-points were selected to extract body shape data. After generalized procrustes, the data analysis was analyzed using principal components analysis, multivariate analysis of variance/canonical variate analysis and cluster analysis. The results showed a significant difference in body shape between three studied populations (P \ 0.001), that were related to the depth and length of the head, the body and caudal peduncle and the positions of the pectoral and ventral fins. Morphological differences of the studied populations can be considered as response to environmental characteristics of their habitats, showing G. aculeatus as a highly successful exotic species to expand its distribution area in the Caspian Sea. Keywords Gomishan wetland Exotic fish Morphology Landmark Phenotypic plasticity Environmental characteristics
1 Introduction Intraspecific morphological variations in fishes are related to the adaptations of organisms to the habitat environmental conditions (Bentzen and McPhail 1984; Cresko and Baker 1996). Hence, morphological studies are among the tools used to identify different fish populations and better understanding of the habitat-associated morphological divergence (Nicieza 1995). Three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 (Gasterosteidae), has a widespread distribution from the northern hemisphere to the temperate regions with fresh and brackish waters, and marine populations (Coad 2019). This species is not economically valuable, but in terms of the behavioral and biological diversity, especially in reproductive behaviors and nesting, it is considered as a prober model for researches (Bell et al. 2011). Origin of this species in Iran is not & Soheil Eagderi [email protected] 1
Department of Fisheries, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
clear, but it is probably close to those of marine populations due to the type of its bony structure, however, it is found in the Hari River and some other rivers of the southern Caspian Sea basin (Coad 2019). In the Caspian Sea, this species is found on the shores and estuaries (Esmaeili et al. 2017, 2018). Although, there are many works regarding the biological aspects of G. aculeatus, including morphometric, longevity, behav
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