Abstract
This study compares osmoregulatory capabilities of two closely related blennies inhabiting different habitats: Salaria pavo which inhabits marine rocky coasts in the Mediterranean and the eastern coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, and Salaria fluviatilis which inhabits freshwater habitats around the Mediterranean, both in rivers connected to the sea and in lakes that for a long time have been separated from the sea. Fishes for this study were collected in Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) (S. fluviatilis) and Habonim beach, Israel, East Mediterranean coast (S. pavo). Both species tolerated salinities of 0, 40 and 100% seawater (0, 14.4 and 36 ppt sea salt respectively). Acclimation for a period of three months to freshwater (S. pavo) and seawater (S. fluviatilis) did not affect survival rates. After acclimation, total body water content of S. fluviatilis remained unaffected by experimental salinities but increased in S. pavo as salinity decreased. The hematocrit of both species increased as salinity increased. Plasma osmolality and Na+ concentrations were unaffected by experimental acclimation salinities in S. fluviatilis, but significantly decreased in S. pavo as salinity decreased. The results indicate that S. fluviatilis is able to osmoregulate both in fresh and seawater. S. pavo, living in seawater, while able to tolerate freshwater environment, fails to maintain constant extracellular fluid concentration. It is suggested that S. pavo, or its marine ancestor, has euryhaline capabilities that enabled it to invade freshwater habitats. S. fluviatilis, as the evolutionary result of this invasion, is thus better adapted to freshwater environment, but did not lose its ability to live in seawater.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Barton, M. and Barton, A.C. 1987. Effects of salinity on oxygen consumption in Cyprinodon variegatus. Copeia 1987: 230-232.
Barton, M. 1979. Serum osmoregulation in two species of estuarine Blennioid fish, Anoplarchus purpurescens and Pholis ornata. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 64A: 305-307.
Bernini, F., Bisogni, G.L. and Soria, P. 1990. The diffusion of Salaria fluviatilis (Pisces: Blenniidae) in the waters of the Pavia province. Atti Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat. Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano 131: 441-444.
Boeuf, G. 1993. Salmonid smolting: a pre-adaptation to the oceanic environment. In Fish Ecophysiology. pp. 105-135. Edited by J.C. Rankin and F.B. Jensen. Chapman and Hall, London.
Bridges, C.R. 1993. Ecophysiology of intertidal fish. In Fish Ecophysiology. pp. 375-400. Edited by J.C. Rankin and F.B. Jensen. Chapman and Hall, London.
Cataldi, E., Ciccotti, E., Dimarco, P., Disanto, O., Bronzi, P. and Cataudella, S. 1995. Acclimation trials of juvenile Italian sturgeon to different salinities: Morpho-physiological descriptors. J. Fish Biol. 47: 609-618.
Changeux, T. and Pont, D. 1995. Current status of the riverine fishes of the French Mediterranean basin. Biol. Conserv. 72: 137-158.
Chervinski, J. 1977. Adaptability of Chelon labrosus (Risso) and Liza saliens (Risso) (Pisces, Mugilidae) to fresh water. Aquaculture 11: 75-79.
Davenport, J. and Vahl, O. 1979. Responses of the fish Blennius pholis to fluctuating salinities. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 1: 101-107.
Evans, D.H. 1969. Sodium, chloride and water balance of the intertidal teleost, Pholis gunnellus. J. Exp. Biol. 50: 179-190.
Evans, D.H. 1993. Osmotic and Ionic regulation. In The Physiology of Fishes. pp. 315-341. Edited by D.H. Evans. CRC Press, Boca Raton.
Fishelson, L. 1963. Observations on littoral fishes of Israel I. behaviour of Blennius pavo Risso (Teleostei, Blenniida). Isr. J. Zool. 12: 67-80.
Freeman, M.C., Vinolas, D., Grossman, G.D. and De Sostoa, A. 1990. Microhabitat use by Blennius fluviatilis in the Rio Matarrana, Spain. Freshwat. Biol. 24: 335-346.
Gordon, M.S., Boëtius, J., Buëtius, I., Evans, D.H., McCarthy, R. and Oglesby, L.C. 1965. Salinity adaptation in the mudskipper fish Periophthalmus sobrinus. Hvalradets Skr. 48: 85-93.
Gophen, M. and Itzhaki, G. 1992. Lake Kinneret, Ministry of Defence-Israel, Tel Aviv.
Hettler, W.F. 1976. Influence of temperature and salinity on routine metabolic rate and growth of young Atlantic menhaden. J. Fish Biol. 8: 55-65.
Hoar, W.S. 1988. The physiology of smolting in salmonids. In Fish Physiology. pp. 275-343. Edited by W.S. Hoar and D.J. Randall. Academic Press, New York.
House, C.R. 1963. Osmotic regulation in the brackish water teleost, Blennius pholis. J. eExp. Biol. 40: 87-104.
Kosswig, C. 1967. Tethys and its relation to the peri-Mediteranean faunas of fresh-water fishes. Syst. Assoc. Publ. 7: 313-324.
Lee, C.G.L., Low, W.P. and Ip, Y.K. 1985. Na+, K+ and volume regulation in the mudskipper, Periophthalmus chrysospilos. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 87A: 439-448.
Lotan, R. 1969. Sodium, chloride and water balance in the euryhaline teleost Aphanius dispar (Ruppell) (Cyprinodontidae). Z. Vergl. Physiol. 65: 455-462.
Lotan, R. 1971. Osmotic adjustment in the euryhaline teleost Aphanius dispar (Cyprinodontidae). Z. vVergl. Physiol. 75: 383-387.
Lui, L.C. 1969. Salinity tolerance and osmoregulation of Taeniomenbras microstomus (Gunther, 1861) (Pisces: Mugiliformes: Atherinidae) from Australian salt lakes. Aust. J. Mar. Freshwat. Res. 20: 157-162.
Madsen, S.S., Larsen, B.K. and Jensen, F.B. 1996. Effects of freshwater to seawater transfer on osmoregulation, acid-base balance and respiration in river migrating whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus). J. Comp. Physiol. B 166: 101-109.
Mir, S. 1990. Taxonomical studies and the geographical distribution of freshwater fishes of Jordan. Bangladesh J. Zool. 18: 157-176.
Muller, R. and Meng, H.J. 1992. Past and present state of the ichthyofauna of lake Lugano. Aqua. Sci. 54: 338-350.
Oliveira, R.F., Almada, V.C., Almeida, A.J., Santos, R.S. and Goncalves, E.J. 1992. A checklist of the blennioid fishes Teleostei Blennioidei occurring in Portuguese waters. Arquipel. Cienc. Nat. 23-37.
Peterson, M.S. 1988. Comparative physiological ecology of centrarchids in hyposaline environment. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 45: 827-833.
Plaza-Yglesias, M., Lopez, I. and Herrera, F.C. 1989. Osmotic regulation in aqueous humor and blood in the euryhaline fish, Eugerres plumieri. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 92A: 195-196.
Steinitz, H. 1950. Contribution to the knowledge of the Blenniidae of the eastern Mediterranean III. Istanb. Univ. Fen. Fak. Mecm., Ser. B., 15: 60-87.
Steinitz, H. 1954. The distribution and evolution of the fishes of Palestine. Istanb. Univ. Fen. Fak. Hidrobiol., Ser. B. 1: 225-227.
Stuenkel, E.I. and Hillyard, S.D. 1981. The effects of temperature and salinity acclimation on metabolic rate and osmoregulation in the pupfish Cyprinodon salinus. Copeia 1981: 411-417.
Summerfelt, R.C. and Smith, L.S. 1990. Anesthesia, surgery, and related techniques. In Methods for Fish Biology. pp. 213-272. Edited by C.B. Schreck and P.B. Moyle. American Fisheries Society, Berthesda, Maryland.
Susanto, G.N. and Peterson, M.S. 1996. Survival, osmoregulation and oxygen consumption of YOY coastal largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides (Lacepede) exposed to saline media. Hydrobiol. 323: 119-127.
Wilkinson, L. 1990. SYSTAT: The System for Statistics. Evanston, IL: SYSTAT, Inc. Zander, C.D. 1973. Evolution of Blennioidei in the Mediterranean sea. Rev. Trav. Inst. Peches. Marit. 37: 215-221.
Zava, B. and Violani, C. 1991. On the presence of salaria fluviatilis Asso 1801 in Sicily (Pisces: Blenniidae). Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali Bollettino (Torino) 9: 313-324.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Plaut, I. Comparison of salinity tolerance and osmoregulation in two closely related species of blennies from different habitats. Fish Physiology and Biochemistry 19, 181–188 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007798712727
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007798712727