Análises morfométricas para predições do desempenho natatório de duas espécies de peixes neotropicais migradoras de longas distâncias

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the morphometric characteristics related to swimming performance of two migratory neotropical species, of long distances, which would subsidize the study of swimming performance and the planning of futures fish pass systems. A total of 80 adult fish of the species Leporinus elongatus and Prochilodus lineatus (40 of each one) were analyzed, collected on the fish pass of Sergio Motta Hydroelectric Power Plant (Porto Primavera), high Paraná river, during November 2007 to January 2008 and October 2009. Thirteen morphological measurements were done to obtain eight morphometric ratios (muscle ratio, propulsive ratio, fineness ratio, aspect ratio, caudal peduncle depth factor, caudal fin length ratio, pectoral fin ratio and length from nose to pectoral fin base ratio) considered potentially important to describe the fish swimming performance. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and the Analysis of variance were applied to verify the morphological diversification pattern between the two species. Leporinus elongatus and Prochilodus lineatus differed regarding morphometric characteristics related to swimming performance, as muscle ratio, caudal fin length ratio, caudal peduncle depth factor, length from nose to pectoral fin base ratio and fineness ratio. These morphometric ratios can be used to predict the swimming performance of the studied species. However, it is important to emphasize the need of more studies related to survey of swimming performance (tests of prolonged and burst speed) to predict if the species presented differences for swimming speed/performance, whereas the predictive character of this kind of approach would give better precision to analysis, besides contributing significantly to subsidize the absence of basic information about the biology of our neotropical migratory native species.