IS THERE ANY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FLUCTUATING ASYMMETRY AND REPRODUCTIVE INVESTMENT IN GIANT FEATHERBACK (CHITALA LOPIS, NOTOPTERIDAE)
Abstract: Fluctuating
asymmetry (FA) is often used as an indicator of perturbed development. As
organisms placed under greater stress, less energy is available to buffer their
development compared to unstressed individuals and increasing levels of
asymmetry. Therefore, individual asymmetry scores within a population can be
used as a measure of an organism’s ability to buffer its development and can be
considered as an indirect measurement of individual fitness. In this study a
test was conducted to know any correlation among FA and four fitness traits in
giant featherback (Chitala lopis) inhabiting non acidified and acidified region
along the Kampar River. Three bilateral meristic characters were counted on
each side of the fish: number of gill rakers on the lower first branchial arch,
eyes diameter, and number of pectoral-fin rays and four traits related to the
fitness were measured: egg diameter, size of first maturity, gonad somatic
index, and fecundity. Results show that FA (both number and magnitude) levels
are differerent, giant featherback inhabiting more acidic station were slightly
more asymmetric than those from less acidic one except to those inhabiting
alkali station. However, the reproductive investment of giant featherback in
the five sampling stations studied here gave no indication that the populations
strongly affected by acidification. In this study it did not find any
significant negative correlation between FA and any of the measured fitness
traits. Therefore it can be concluded that FA is not a useful measure of
fitness in this species.
Keywords: Fluctuating
asymmetry; chitala; reproductive investment
Author: Arif Wibowo
Journal Code: jpperikanangg120051
