Morphology of the fertilizable mature egg in the Acanthopagrus latus , A. schlegeli and Sparus sarba (Teleostei: perciformes: sparidae)

Summary Through appropriate scanning electron microscope (SEM) processing, the shape and the surface structures of just‐mature eggs are preserved integrally for observation and measuring to guarantee accurate comparison and prediction on the phylogenetic relationships among three species of teleost, i.e. Acanthopagrus latus , Acanthopagrus schlegeli and Sparus sarba of Sparidae. Eggs in all three species can be categorized as type III eggs. Specifically, a regular pattern is found in the arrangement of micropyle and its surrounding pore canals from the inspected surface structures of the mature eggs in three species. Other than these similarities in egg surface structures, several differences in micropyle structures, micropyle region and size of pore canals are also observed in eggs of respective species. Comprehension and accurate data are statistically computed and analyzed through hierarchical cluster analysis to provide solid species‐specific evidences and standardized empirical reference for accurate species identification and phylogeny determination.