Spawning and parental care in Hoplias malabaricus (Teleostei, Characiformes, Erythrinidae) in the Southern Pantanal, Brazil

Abstract

Herein we describe spawning and egg guarding in the erythrinid fish Hoplias malabaricus observed in the southern Pantanal (19° 34' S and 57° 00' W), state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Nests were depressions built on sandy soil in flooded areas, and contained a mean of 8,197 ± 2,204 eggs (N = 4); the mean diameter of eggs was 1.44 ± 0.09 mm (N = 400). Among 11 nests observed, eight were guarded by males and three by the pair. One male remained in the nest for six days, and two pairs remained guarding the eggs for at least three days before being captured. Females (N = 2) captured in the nest contained oocytes in their ovaries. Our observations suggest that male parental care is the normal form of parental care in H. malabaricus, but biparental care also seems to occur. No presente estudo, descrevemos os comportamentos de desova e cuidado parental para um membro da referida família, Hoplias malabaricus, os quais foram observados no Pantanal sul (19° 34' S e 57° 00' W), Estado de Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasil. As desovas foram observadas no início da cheia, depositadas em ninhos construídos em substrato arenoso em áreas alagadas. As desovas continham, em média, 8.197 ± 2.204 ovos (N = 4); o diâmetro médio dos ovos foi de 1,44 ± 0,09 mm (N = 400). Entre 11 ninhos observados, oito foram guardados por machos e em três observamos o casal. Um macho permaneceu no ninho por seis dias, e dois casais foram observados por três dias no ninho até serem capturados. As fêmeas (N = 2) capturadas nos ninhos continham óvulos nos ovários. O cuidado parental em Hoplias malabaricus é normalmente exercido pelos machos, mas nossas observações sugerem que o cuidado biparental pode ocorrer de forma facultativa.Palavras-chave: reprodução, cuidado parental, Hoplias malabaricus, Erythrinidae, Pantanal.

The role of ovarian steroids in reproductive plasticity in Hoplias malabaricus (Teleostei: Characiformes: Erythrinidae) in tropical reservoirs with different degrees of pollution

“…However, in Oreochromis niloticus, a species with asynchronous oocyte development, the exposure to metals results in an intense hepatic mobilization of lipids to the ovaries, which helps prioritize and anticipate the reproductive process under unfavorable conditions (Correia et al, 2010). Our data show that H. malabaricus in BIL and PN present group-synchronous oocyte development, which corroborates the data from the literature (Caramaschi et al, 1982;Araújo-Lima and Bittencourt, 2001;Prado et al, 2006). However, the expected temporal change in the lipid profile in the ovaries is not a typical pattern in females living in a polluted environment.…”

Spatio-temporal distribution of fish larvae in relation to ontogeny and water quality in the oligohaline zone of a North Brazilian estuary

“…The practice of parental care, as it is the case for Anableps anableps (Linnaeus, 1758 -Anablepidae) and Hoplia gr. malabaricus (Bloch, 1794 -Erythrinidae), justify the scarcity of their larvae in the planktonic catches (Prado et al 2006, Oliveira et al 2011). The opposite scenario, when only larvae were present, was also observed.…”

Pleistocene karyotypic divergence in Hoplias malabaricus (Bloch, 1794) (Teleostei: Erythrinidae) populations in southeastern Brazil

“…These results and previous studies (Ferreira et al, 1989;Born & Bertollo, 2006) indicate that karyomorph 2n = 42B is also more abundant in lakes that keep native fish communities therefore relative abundance of karyomorph 2n = 42B may be due to older selective or non-selective factors. Karyomorph 2n = 42A may face small population dynamics such as the Allee Effect (Stephens et al, 1999), where males and females may not encounter for reproduction, a critical aspect for the nesting building behavior of this species (Prado et al, 2006).…”