Skeletal development in Polynemidae (Teleostei: Percomorphacea: Perciformes)

• Grant number: 18/19399-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: December 01, 2018
• End date: February 28, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Morphology of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Aléssio Datovo da Silva
• Grantee: Paulo Presti Migliavacca
• Supervisor: George David Johnson
• Host Institution: Museu de Zoologia (MZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 17/16192-7 - Phylogenetic relations and evolution of the skeletal-muscle system of Polynemidae (Teleostei: Percomorphacea: Perciformes), BP.MS

Abstract

Polynemidae is a family of primarily marine fishes with eight genera and 41 extant species distributed throughout the globe. Some species can reach up to two meters long and have economic importance in specific regions where their abundance is higher. The phylogenetic allocation of polynemids within Percomorphacea is uncertain and their internal relationships have never been explicitly tested on either morphological or molecular grounds. Polynemid morphology and development are also largely unknown, with little osteological and no detailed ontogenetic information documented in the literature. Even more surprising is the lacking of data on the anatomy and evolution of the most extraordinary morphological feature of polynemids: their highly modified pectoral fins with elongated ventral rays that assume tactile functions. Ontogeny has proven to be a remarkable tool to unravel homologies, especially of intricate and enigmatic evolutionary novelties. The present project aims to study aspects of the development of the polynemid skeleton, elucidate the morphological changes involved in the formation of their specialized pectoral fins, and enrich the phylogenetic analysis of the Polynemidae with data from larval stages.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

PRESTI, PAULO; JOHNSON, G. DAVID; DATOVO, ALESSIO. Anatomy and evolution of the pectoral filaments of threadfins (Polynemidae). SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, v. 10, n. 1, OCT 20 2020. (17/16192-7, 18/19399-4, 16/19075-9)

PRESTI, PAULO; JOHNSON, G. DAVID; DATOVO, ALESSIO. Facial and gill musculature of polynemid fishes, with notes on their possible relationships with sciaenids (Percomorphacea: Perciformes). Journal of Morphology, v. 281, n. 6, MAY 2020. (16/19075-9, 17/16192-7, 18/19399-4)

PRESTI, PAULO; JOHNSON, G. DAVID; DATOVO, ALESSIO. Untangling the threads: phylogenetic relationships of threadfins (Percomorphacea: Perciformes: Polynemidae). ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, v. 199, n. 1, p. 50-pg., 2023-06-29. (16/19075-9, 18/19399-4, 17/16192-7)