Brown bullheads may have questionable parentage
Ann Arbor, MI — While some species of bullhead catfish may look the same to the average person, they are not the same to biologists. Distinguishing individuals of one species from another can be difficult, but is important for ecological studies in the Great Lakes. An additional problem with species identification is that many fish cross-breed, or hybridize, with closely related species.
Researchers at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College compared conventional identification methods such as body coloration and shape with molecular tools (DNA fingerprinting) to identify the same individual brown bullhead from Presque Isle Bay in Lake Erie.
"Comparing these two approaches revealed that although all of the brown bullheads taken from Presque Isle Bay appeared identical, some carried genetic traits of the closely related black bullhead," says David Hunnicutt, a molecular biologist at Penn State Erie. "This may indicate that the two species hybridize."
Brown bullheads and other species are used by researchers to determine the health of the aquatic ecosystem, including tracking the recovery of Presque Isle Bay and other areas of concern in the Great Lakes.
Original Publication Information
Results of this study "Use of mtDNA to Identify Genetic Introgression among Related Species of Catfish," are reported by David W. Hunnicutt, John Cingolani and Margaret A. Voss in the latest issue (Volume 31, No. 4, pp. 482-491) of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, 2005.
Contacts
For information about this study, contact Margaret A. Voss, School of Science, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, 5091 Station Rd, Erie, PA 16563; mav11@psu.edu; (814) 898-6292.
For information about the Journal of Great Lakes Research, contact Marlene Evans, Editor, National Water Research Institute, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 3H5, Canada; editor@iaglr.org; (608) 692-1076.
Links
Since 1967, IAGLR has served as the focal point for compiling and disseminating multidisciplinary knowledge on North America's Laurentian Great Lakes and other large lakes of the world and their watersheds. In part, IAGLR communicates this knowledge through publication of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, available to members in print and electronic form. A searchable archive of the journal is available online and includes the abstracts of articles from the journal's inception in 1975 through the most recent issue. In addition, complete articles are available to members who have signed up for an electronic subscription.
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