Occurrence of hybrid among Takifugu in East China Sea

Abstract:

We harvested 15 individuals Takifugu in Luchao Seaport of the East China Sea, 11 of them were both spotted and striated on the dorsal skin, supposed to be the hybrids of Takifugu. DNA barcoding COⅠgene showed these 15 individuals of Takifugu are most closed to Takifugu flavidus and T. bimaculatus, then to T. oblongus, then to T. obscurus. The exon-primed intron-crossing (EPIC) marker which is based on the polymorphosis of intron sequences, showed these fishes are closed to T. flavidus, T. obscurus or T. bimaculatus. We further compared the body color pattern and ray numbers of dorsal fin, anal fin and pectoral fin of there 15 individuals, and found these morphological features in ten individuals of them were not same as those in known Takifugu species, the morphological features seems to be the result of species hybrid. Taken together with proofs from the molecular and morphological data, we can say at lease some of these fish are the hybrids of T. flavidus with T. bimaculatus, or T. obscurus, or T. oblongus. It is possible as well that some of them are the hybrids of T. oblongus with T. flavidus, or T. bimaculatus, or T. obscurus. Our result showed that occurrence of hybrid among Takifugu in East China Sea, even so far we can not determine whether the species hybridization was wild or artificial.