THE USE OF PIGMENTATION AND MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS TO IDENTIFY ITALIAN MULLET FRY

Mullet fry from Italian coastal waters are examined to ascertain ontog enetic changes in pigmentation, external morphology, anal-fin ray coun ts, and morphology of the pyloric caeca and pharyngobranchial organ. T he taxonomic utility of these characters is assessed. Intraspecific an d ontogenetic variation in anal-fin ray numbers do not make this a con sistently reliable character for identification purposes. Pharyngobran chial morphology can assist diagnoses of larger fry or juveniles; howe ver, pigmentation patterns are the most reliable characters for smalle r fry. Pigmentation characters, which can be used in laboratory- and f ield-based studies, require minimal manipulation of the fish and enabl e rapid identification of large numbers of specimens. These techniques are valuable for aquaculturists and fish biologists requiring more in formation on the identification, distribution and life history of mugi lids. (C) 1996 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles