Development of the bony skull in common sole: brief survey of morpho‐functional aspects of ossification sequence

Abstract

The postembryonic development of the bony cephalic skeleton in the common sole Solea solea, observed from hatching to the juvenile stage or postmetamorphic larva, appears to follow a similar chronological order to that observed in other Pleuronectiformes and Perciformes and the sequence in bone formation is a response to functional demands. At hatching, S. solea has no bony structure. On day 4, only the outlines of maxillaries and opercular bones are visible. On day 6, a thin parasphenoid appears between the orbits and isolates the braincase from the buccal cavity making food ingestion possible without any impact on the brain. On day 8, the dentaries form and two small preopercular bones appear on each side of the head. On day 9, at weaning from the yolk sac, branchial arches support the gill filaments (used for respiration and trapping phytoplankton which pass through the open mouth). On day 10, the premaxillaries develop in front of the maxillaries. The superimposing of the maxillaries and the premaxillaries is a typical feature of species possessing an acanthopterygian protractile mouth at the adult stage. On day 12, the frontals develop above the orbits and the set of opercular bones is complete. On day 18, the migration of the left eye begins. On day 20, the left eye has moved to the median crest of the head. On day 23, both eyes are located on the same side. On day 26, the braincase is formed by a basioccipital, exoccipitals, pterotics, sphenotics and a supraoccipital. On day 50, new structures have appeared, others have developed and have undergone an extensive remodeling due to metamorphosis. 2001 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles

Post‐embryonic remodelling of neurocranial elements: a comparative study of normal versus abnormal eye migration in a flatfish, the Atlantic halibut

“…Brewster (1987) proposes an ethmoid/frontal process connection at peak metamorphosis in common sole ( Solea solea ), but it is unclear when this occurs. According to Wagemans & Vandewalle (2001) the frontal primordia are present in the symmetric common sole larvae at 12 days post‐hatching, but do not calcify until day 26 post‐hatch, when the eyes are fully migrated. The frontal processes are not mentioned until post‐metamorphosis when they are fully ossified and in contact with the lateral ethmoids in sole.…”

The effect of dietary arachidonic acid during the Artemia feeding period on larval growth and skeletogenesis in Senegalese sole, Solea senegalensis

“…The incidence of skeletal deformities was determined in the cranium, vertebral column and caudal fin complex of 40 juveniles per replicate (n = 160 per diet) at 50 dph. Skeletal structures were identified and named according to Wagemans and Vandewalle (2001) and Gavaia et al. (2002).…”

Skeletogenesis in the Persian sturgeon Acipenser persicus and its correlation with gene expression of vitamin K‐dependent proteins during larval development

“…Between 21·5 and 37·2 mm L T (20 and 30 dph), mineralization was observed in the following skeletal elements: the subopercle, supracleithrum, posttemporal, parietal and the dorsal‐scute row. These results are in contrast with those obtained in teleost fishes, which showed earlier mineralization in the above‐mentioned cranial structures (Gluckmann et al ., ; Wagemans & Vandewalle, ). In this study, the initial formation of dorsal, lateral and ventral rudimentary scute rows took place asynchronously with regard to age and fell within the values reported for other acipenserid species.…”