Morphometric and Genetic Characterization of Dominant Fish Species in Progo River, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

A study on the morphology and genetics of the three species of dominant wader that live in the Progo River has been conducted. This study aimed to identify the three kinds of dominant waders in the Progo River, their morphology, and their genetics to ensure their right identity. Fish characterization was done by morphological analysis using the truss-morphometric method and genetic analysis using molecular markers. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) based on PCR was used for diversity identification for interspecies and between species. Several analyses of water quality parameters (temperature, nitrate, phosphate, and ammonia) were also carried out to determine the habitat’s suitability for the fish’s survival. Based on the results of discriminant function analysis, all wader fish from the Progo River used in this study were classified into three species with the highest differentiation character D4 (distance between the starting point of upper tail fin and the starting point of lower tail fin). Results also show that wader abang fish have similar morphometric characteristics and DNA closer to wader kepe compared to wader pari. The length-weight relationship of wader fish from the Progo River shows that the growth pattern of wader abang and wader kepe is allometric positive, while that of wader pari is allometric negative. The value of the condition factor for wader fish from the Progo River indicates that the environmental habitat of wader fish is good and stable so that it can support the fish growth.