Development of embryos in Mastacembelus mastacembelus (Bank & Solender, 1794) (Mesopotamian spiny eel) (Mastacembelidae)

Abstract

In this study, the embryonic development of the eggs in the Mastacembelus mastacembelus (Bank & Solender, 1794) was examined. At the same time, possibilities of arti¢cial breeding through arti¢cial insemination were investigated. Arti¢cial insemination was achieved by mixing the eggs of the mature female and sperm of the mature male samples caught with gill nets (22 Â 22) in Ataturk Dam Lake in Turkey. To this end, ¢rst in a Petri dish (100 Â 20), the testes were cut into small pieces with a lancet and the mixture of sperm^testes-tissue was obtained. The fertilization rate of the eggs was found to be 80%. The diameter of the eggs ranged from 2.015to 1.147 mm. The perivitelline space formed 0.5 h after insemination. The ¢rst cleavage occurred at the animal pool 4 h after insemination. The oil droplets had fused to a single droplet 19 h after insemination. The blastoderm became an embryonic shield 30 h after insemination. The blastoderm covered almost half the egg 40 h after insemination and embryonic body was formed. The blastoderm covered almost the whole egg 50 h after insemination. Some somites were discernible 59 h after insemination. The embryonic body reached two-third of the circumference of the egg 70 h after insemination. The tail bud began to separate from the yolk 77 h after insemination. A newly hatched larva was observed at 85 h after insemination.

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“…Spawning of few other endemic Mesopotamian fish have been also studied and successfully induced (Al Hazzaa and Hussein, 2003a, b;Şahinöz et al, 2007), their early life-stages are controlled (Şahinöz et al, 2006;Al Hazzaa and Hussein, 2007) and feeding commercial diets proved efficient (Gökçek et al, 2008;Gökçek and Tepe, 2009). It is possible, after understanding more details on the biology of Mesopotamian endemic asp, to apply advanced techniques for restocking this fish in natural habitats and to introduce it as a new species for aquaculture.…”

Fatty acid composition, cholesterol and fat-soluble vitamins of wild-caught freshwater spiny eel, Mastacembelus simack (Walbaum, 1792)

“…Some of the freshwater eel catch data are included in marine eel data, and some catch data are not recorded. It is consumed with pleasure in Turkey as a food fish and is an important source of income for commercial fisheries (Şahinöz et al., 2006, 2007; Oymak et al., 2009).…”

Growth and reproduction of Mesopotamian spiny eel (Mastacembelus mastacembelusBanks & Solander, 1794) in Ataturk Dam Lake (Şanliurfa), Turkey

“…Coad (1987, 1995, 1996) studied its taxonomy and distribution; however, the only study on growth properties of the species was in southern Iran (Pazira et al., 2005). Two studies dealt with histological and embryological properties (Gezen et al., 2005a,b; Şahinöz et al., 2006). The aim of the present paper is to provide preliminary information on length at age, growth and reproduction of the Mesopotamian spiny eel in Turkey.…”