Premium
Temporal variation and sexual dimorphism of the skin of perch Perca fluviatilis L.: a morphological study
Author(s) -
Lindesjöö E.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal of applied ichthyology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.392
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1439-0426
pISSN - 0175-8659
DOI - 10.1111/j.1439-0426.1994.tb00155.x
Subject(s) - sexual dimorphism , biology , perch , epidermis (zoology) , zoology , dermis , variation (astronomy) , anatomy , fish <actinopterygii> , fishery , physics , astrophysics
Summary Temporal variation and sexual dimorphism were found in the skin of the caudal fin of wild perch from the Baltic Sea. For most of the year males had thicker skin than females. Both sexes were found to have the highest recorded epidermal thickness in the pre‐spawnin period, indicating a relation with the reproductive cycle. However, the reverse pattern occurred in the dermis, i.e. an increased thickness in the post‐spawning period. The study also demonstrated that temporal variation and sexual dimorphism of the epidermis were, at least partially, the result of variation both in the number and in the size of epithelial cells. Temporal variation of the cellular components was also found, with an increased prevalence of vesicle‐containing epithelial cells during the pre‐spawning period.