Scholarlink

<p>Understanding growth patterns is essential for deciphering how organisms adapt to extreme environments. <i>Sinocyclocheilus</i> cavefish present a unique model for examining how vertebrates modify their growth trajectories and physiological responses to optimize survival and reproductive success in cave habitats. In this study, we analyzed age determination and growth dynamics across three <i>Sinocyclocheilus</i> species—<i>S. guilinensis</i>, <i>S. microphthalmus</i>, and <i>S. furcodorsalis</i>—by comparing scale-based age estimates. Scales proved to be a reliable tool for age inference in both cave- and surface-dwelling populations, with distinct nonlinear growth patterns emerging among the studied species. Notably, these growth patterns exhibited significant correlations with morphological characteristics, particularly those associated with body height and humpback morphology, highlighting the critical influence of body shape on growth dynamics in both cave- and surface-dwelling forms, with pronounced adaptations observed in the cave-dwelling species. This study advances our understanding of growth and morphological divergence in <i>Sinocyclocheilus</i> species, as well as the evolutionary significance of these adaptations in cavefish.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Different growth patterns in cave-adapted Sinocyclocheilus fish species

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年11月26日

查看全文
  • Shaohua Xu,
  • Yahui Zhao,
  • Yang Zhao,
  • Chongnv Wang,
  • Xinxin Li,
  • Baocheng Guo

摘要

Understanding growth patterns is essential for deciphering how organisms adapt to extreme environments. Sinocyclocheilus cavefish present a unique model for examining how vertebrates modify their growth trajectories and physiological responses to optimize survival and reproductive success in cave habitats. In this study, we analyzed age determination and growth dynamics across three Sinocyclocheilus species—S. guilinensis, S. microphthalmus, and S. furcodorsalis—by comparing scale-based age estimates. Scales proved to be a reliable tool for age inference in both cave- and surface-dwelling populations, with distinct nonlinear growth patterns emerging among the studied species. Notably, these growth patterns exhibited significant correlations with morphological characteristics, particularly those associated with body height and humpback morphology, highlighting the critical influence of body shape on growth dynamics in both cave- and surface-dwelling forms, with pronounced adaptations observed in the cave-dwelling species. This study advances our understanding of growth and morphological divergence in Sinocyclocheilus species, as well as the evolutionary significance of these adaptations in cavefish.