New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Biochemical-genetic and meristic evidence that blue and copper moki (Teleostei: Latridae: Latridopsis) are discrete species

P. J. SMITH¹
C. D. ROBERTS²
P. G. BENSON¹

¹National Institute of Water & Atmospheric
 Research Ltd
P. O. Box 14 902
Wellington, New Zealand
email: p.smith@niwa.cri.nz
²Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
P. O. Box 467
Wellington, New Zealand

Abstract  Specimens of blue moki Latridopsis ciliaris (Forster in Bloch & Schneider, 1801) from New Zealand were shown to differ from specimens of copper moki Latridopsis forsteri (Castelnau, 1872) using two genetic methods--allozymes and muscle proteins. Allozyme techniques revealed fixed differences between blue and copper moki at 4 out of 15 loci. There was a genetic distance of 0.31-0.34 between population samples of the two colour morphs. The two morphs were also distinguished by iso-electric focusing of muscle proteins. Meristic characters, counted in the specimens studied with genetic markers, revealed diagnostic markers in tubed lateral line scales and scales in the lower transverse series. It is concluded that specimens of blue moki from New Zealand and copper moki from New Zealand and Tasmania are valid species.

Keywords  allozymes; iso-electric focusing; meristics; blue moki; Latridopsis ciliaris; copper moki; Latridopsis forsteri; species discrimination

M00030

Received 21 June 2000; accepted 18 October 2000

New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2001, Vol. 35: 387-395

0028-8330/01/3502-0387 $7.00 (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand 2001

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (1073K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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