Leucosis in Heptapterus mustelinus
Posted: 01 Oct 2023, 01:00
Ferraz M, Schulz UH, Santos de Lucena CA, Lehmann A. P (2023) A case of leucosis in Heptapterus mustelinus (Siluriformes, Heptapteridae) among populations of streams in southern Brazil. Has leucosis in Heptapterus mustelinus an adaptive value in shaded streams? In: Boll P, Lehmann A. P, Allgayer H, Krüger L (Eds) Diversity and Wildlife Management: The legacy of PPG Biologia Unisinos. Neotropical Biology and Conservation, 18(3): 177–189. https://doi.org/10.3897/neotropical.18.e103523
https://neotropical.pensoft.net/article/103523/
https://neotropical.pensoft.net/article/103523/
Key words: Catfish, color patterns, costal basin, NeotropicalAbstract
Fish populations in environments with a high degree of geographic isolation may be prone to mutations expressed in the phenotypes. These mutations may be related to color pattern, forming leucistic individuals. This work aims to register and to describe possible mechanisms that influence this mutation. Additionally, the study compares other morphometric variations among different populations and leucistic individuals of . A total of four leucistic individuals were collected in a small shaded stream, highly segmented by rapids and waterfalls. The biometric analyses showed no significant morphological differences when compared to other populations of the same ecoregion. The selection of leucism may be directly related to the sampled environment, since the leucistic specimens occurred in a shaded stream with dense vegetation cover. Low occurrence of predatory species of fish can be an important point to maintain the characteristic. Consequently, predation may not exert a negative selective pressure on leucistic individuals.
