Morphological aspects of feeding and improvement in feeding ability in the early larval stages of red sea bream Pagrus major

Abstract

The present study examined the appearance, ossification and growth of the bones that form the oral cavity in early larval stages of laboratory reared red sea bream (Pagrus major) for 380 h after hatching. The fundamental elements of the oral cavity appeared 11 h after initial mouth opening (HAMO). Development in the red sea bream, based on the osteological development of the feeding apparatus, was divided into three phases following the first feeding (24 HAMO; mean total body length 3.3 mm). The first phase was the early sucking phase (24 to 80-100 HAMO; approximately 3.9 mm), during which the head and bones increased in size. The intensified sucking phase (to 200-220 HAMO; approximately 4.9 mm) was defined by the appearance of new structural elements and a continued enlargement of the head and bones. Finally, during the transition phase (beyond 300 HAMO; approximately 5.6 mm), larvae used grasping as well as sucking to feed, new elements appeared, ossification began, size increased and teeth were acquired. As the larvae advanced through these three phases, the ability to feed by sucking was enhanced by the appearance and growth of new bones. The developmental phases appear to be linked to the transition from endogenous to exogenous nutrition resources under laboratory rearing conditions and to diversification in the size and components of wild food organisms.