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Melanization of the alimentary tract in lizardfishes (Teleostei, Aulopiformes, Synodontidae)

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Abstract

Investigating the alimentary tract in several species of lizardfishes (Synodontidae, Teleostei) of the genera Saurida, Synodus and Trachinocephalus, from various sites of their distribution, revealed melanization of the tract wall. This phenomenon was observed in several species of the genus Saurida, but not in the other two genera. This melanization is caused by layers of melanosomes rich in melanin granules and deposited within the connective tissue of the submucosa, between the muscular wall and the muscularis submucosa. From this site this black submucosa extends into the folds of the mucosa. In S. tumbil and S. filamentosa, the entire alimentary tract is black, whereas in S. macrolepis only the stomach is partially or entirely black. This phenomenon and its possible importance are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks are due to L. O’Hara and A. Suzumoto of the Bernice Bishop Museum (Hawaii), and O. Gon of the South African Institute of Aquatic Biodiversity, Grahamstown (South Africa), for samples of fishes from their museums. Thanks are also extended to N. Paz for editorial help, and I. Brickner and Y. Delarea for assistance in the histological work and electron microscopy, and to V. Wexler for help in the artwork. The authors are thankful to the anonymous reviewers for their constructive remarks to the MS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, 69978, Israel

    Lev Fishelson & Menachem Goren

  2. Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 91904, Israel

    Daniel Golani

  3. School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT, 0801, Australia

    Barry Russell

  4. National Institute of Oceanography, Shikmona, Haifa, Israel

    Bella Galil

Authors
  1. Lev Fishelson
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  2. Daniel Golani
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  3. Barry Russell
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  4. Bella Galil
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  5. Menachem Goren
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Correspondence to Lev Fishelson.

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Fishelson, L., Golani, D., Russell, B. et al. Melanization of the alimentary tract in lizardfishes (Teleostei, Aulopiformes, Synodontidae). Environ Biol Fish 95, 195–200 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-012-9982-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-012-9982-8

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