Abstract

DE LA CRUZ-TORRES, Jonathan; GONZALEZ-ACOSTA, Adrián F.  and  MARTINEZ-PEREZ, José A.. Description and comparison of the lateral line of three species of electric rays of the genus Narcine (Torpediniformes: Narcinidae). Rev. biol. trop [online]. 2018, vol.66, n.2, pp.586-592. ISSN 0034-7744.  http://dx.doi.org/10.15517/rbt.v66i2.33382.

This study describes the composition and structural arrangement of the lateral line system of three electric ray species (Narcine bancroftii, N. entemedor and N. vermiculatus). All three species showed the supraorbital (SO), infraorbital (IO), hyomandibular (HYO) and posterior lateral line (PLL) canals, less branched compared to other batoids. Narcine entemedor differs from its congeners by the extensive branching of the SO and IO canals, which converge in the inter-orbital region; in N. vermiculatus these canals present a similar condition, but are less branched. In contrast, N. bancroftii has divergent canals (directed outwards from the inter-orbital region). HYO canals are located on the periphery of the electric organs in these species; in N. bancroftii the branches extend towards the posterior region, whereas in the other species are reduced (N. entemedor) or almost absent (N. vermiculatus). The PLL is curved and projected towards the urostyle, it also shows a large number of ramifications, except in N. vermiculatus. Information about the LL canal system arrangement and pore number in Narcine can be useful for the taxonomic distinction of its species, as it has been corroborated in other Torpediniformes. Rev. Biol. Trop. 66(2): 586-592. Epub 2018 June 01.

Keywords : electric rays; lateral line system; Torpediniformes; taxonomic characters.

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