Diagnostic Value of Morone Dentition

Widespread introductions of Morone species and hybrids have led to occasional difficulties in their identification. As the number of Morone morphotypes in individual water bodies continues to expand, or if introgression occurs, there will be an increasing need for diagnostic tools such as the dentition patterns described here. Two sets of specialized teeth are found in the soft tissue at the margins of the tongue–elongate tooth plates lateral to the basihyal and scattered teeth or tooth patches near the tip of the tongue. Variations among six species in these tooth formations, incorporated into a dental key, provide additional discriminatory information to supplement the oft‐cited differences in dentition at the rear of the tongue. The presence of a single basihyal tooth patch as diagnostic for white bass Morone chrysops is not reliable as usually claimed because nearly all juvenile and many adult specimens examined bore two basihyal tooth patches. White perch Morone americana and yellow bass M. mississippiensis, both of which lack basihyal teeth, can be differentiated by the presence of a single row of vomerine teeth in the latter. Although there are no distinct dental characters that distinguish the two Morone hybrids examined, lingual dentition patterns may be useful in resolving the identification of Morone morphotypes. Unique possession of lateral tooth plates demonstrates monophyly for this group and supports monogeneric classification for the American and Afro‐European species.