A quantitative study of morphological and histological changes in the skeleton of Salmo salar during its anadromous migration

Abstract

A quantitative study of morphological and histological changes in the skeleton (cranial bones and vertebrae) of adult Atlantic salmon Salmo salar during its anadromous migration was performed in order to specify various aspects of its skeletal biology in relationship to this migration. At the beginning of the ascent, there was no morphological difference in the cranial bones between males and females. As the spawning season approached, males showed marked secondary sexual characters particularly allometric breeding growth of some bones of the skull. The histological analysis of the vertebral bone tissue along the vertebral axis showed that bone compacity and number of trabeculae vary depending on their localization on the vertebral axis. Moreover, bone compacity decreased significantly with the sexual maturation of the fish whereas the number of trabeculae grew in both sexes. Thus, the vertebrae (like scales) represent an important source of calcium and other elements during anadromous migration in Atlantic salmon. 1998 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles

Unilateral perivertebral fibrosis associated with lordosis, kyphosis and scoliosis (LKS) in farmed Chinook salmon in New Zealand

“…For histology, a 3-vertebrae-long sample of the spine and adjacent soft tissue was taken from the middle of each of the 4 described regions (Kacem et al 1998). While it cannot be confirmed that the identical vertebrae were taken from each fish, the samples were taken using clear landmarks on the fish so that similar vertebrae were sampled from each fish.…”

Osmoregulatory, metabolic, and nutritional condition of summer-run male Chinook salmon in relation to their fate and migratory behavior in a regulated river

“…Low levels of calcium in Chinook salmon have been shown to reduce growth and result in poor feed conversion (Lall 2002). Sexual maturing Atlantic salmon utilize calcium for remodeling their body shape, so the hypocalcemia observed may impact the ability of the sampled Chinook salmon to form sexual characteristics (Kacem et al 1998, 2000, Witten & Hall 2003.…”

Some Osteological Studies of <i>Coptodon zillii</i> (Gervais 1848) and <i>Oreochromis aureus</i> (Steindachner 1864) Collected Shatt al-Arab River, Basrah, Iraq

“…Therefore, the specification of one vertebra along the vertebral column would be adequate if it was based on only one of these two parameters (Desse et al, 1989). This result backs that of Kacem et al (1998) on the morphology of the skeleton of Salmo salar.…”