Mechanisms of the adaptation of the Kildin cod Gadus morhua kildinensis Derjugin, 1920 (Pisces: Gadidae) to the specific conditions of Lake Mogilnoye

• Published in: Russian journal of marine biology Vol. 43; no. 2; pp. 132 - 139
• Main Authors: Stroganov, A. N., Afanasiev, K. I., Burmensky, V. A., Zhivotovsky, L. A., Zuykova, N. V., Kriksunov, E. A., Mukhina, N. V., Polyakov, M. P., Rubtsova, G. A., Semenova, A. V., Shadrin, A. M., Frolov, O. Yu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Moscow Pleiades Publishing 01.03.2017; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adaptation; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Brackishwater environment; Color; Feeding behavior; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Gadus morhua; Genetic diversity; Ichthyology; Lakes; Life Sciences; Marine fishes; Morphology; Otoliths; Physical characteristics; Reproductive isolation; Specialization; morphobiological characteristics; X-ray microanalysis of otoliths; Kildin cod; genetic polymorphism
• ISSN: 1063-0740; 1608-3377
• DOI: 10.1134/S1063074017020122

The mechanisms of the adaptation of the Kildin cod to the conditions of a meromictic lake were analyzed based on the study of morphological, biological, and genetic characteristics. Significant differences between the Kildin cod and Atlantic cod have been found in their morphological and genetic characteristics. The results of an X-ray microanalysis of otoliths, which were conducted for the first time, confirm that the distribution range of the Kildin cod in Lake Mogilnoye also extends to brackish waters. It has been shown that the formation of the reproductively isolated lacustrine population of Kildin cod is accompanied by specialization in a number of characteristics (body color, feeding strategy, behavior, etc.) and by a decrease in genetic diversity.