Genetic evidence for two species of the genus Pimelodus Lacépède, 1803 (Siluriformes, Pimelodidae) in the Iguaçu River (Brazil)

Abstract

The existence of reproductive isolation between two morphs of catfish, endemic to the Iguaçu River (Brazil), was examined by enzyme starch gel electrophoresis. Tissues of 19 catfish (Pimelodus ortmanni) and 15 of a similar morph (Pimelodus sp.), which differs from P. ortmanni by presenting larger and more scattered dusky spots on its skin, were analyzed. A Nei's (1978) genetic identity of 0.551 was determined by the analysis of 22 enzyme loci. The loci EST*1, EST*2, GDH*1, GPI*1, GPI*2, IDH*1, MDH*1, MDH*2, and PGM*1 were fixed for different alleles in each morph, that is, no heterozygote was found for these loci. The enzymatic patterns observed for the two morphs indicate both that the taxa are reproductively isolated and that they in fact represent separate species.