Morphological asymmetry in the greater lizardfish Saurida tumbil (Bloch, 1795) collected from the marine waters of Iraq

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin Vol. 159; p. 111523
• Main Authors: Jawad, Laith A., Abed, Jassim M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01-10-2020; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Animal morphology; Asymmetry; Basrah; Chemical pollution; Contaminants; Environment; Iraq; Meristic characters; Morphology; Saurida tumbil; Variation; Iraq; Environment; Meristic characters; Basrah; Iraq; Morphology
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111523

Asymmetrical variations in six bilateral morphological characters of 75 specimens of Saurida tumbil obtained from the marine waters of Iraq were assessed. The level of asymmetry in the snout length was highest among the morphological traits examined. Variations in asymmetry in S. tumbil increased with size. These variations are possibly due to chemical contaminants.
•Six bilateral morphological characters of Saurida tumbil collected Iraqi waters was assessed.•The snout length asymmetry was highest among the morphological traits examined.•The reasons of fluctuating asymmetry are discussed relative to diverse contaminants in both water bodies.