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Dissection and Flat-mounting of the Threespine Stickleback Branchial Skeleton

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Lake Malawi cichlid evolution along a benthic/limnetic axis.

C D Hulsey¹, R J Roberts, Y-H E Loh

¹Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Tennessee, 37996.

Ecology and Evolution

|August 7, 2013

Summary

Lake Malawi cichlids show repeated evolution of benthic and limnetic habitats. Larger pectoral fin muscles evolved convergently with benthic feeding habits in this diverse fish radiation.

Keywords:

Adaptive radiation African Great Lakes aquatic locomotion functional morphology mbuna utaka

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Ichthyology
Ecology

Background:

Habitat divergence along benthic-limnetic axes is common in lakes.
Previous studies focused on low-diversity, high-latitude systems.
Lake Malawi harbors an exceptionally diverse cichlid radiation.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate benthic and limnetic divergence in species-rich Lake Malawi cichlids.
Examine the role of pectoral fin morphology in habitat specialization.
Test for repeated evolutionary patterns in this tropical lake system.

Main Methods:

Phylogenetic reconstructions for 24 benthic and limnetic cichlid species.
Analysis of pectoral fin muscle and fin area divergence.
Correlation analysis between morphology and habitat use.

Main Results:

Multiple independent divergences along the benthic-limnetic axis were inferred.
Pectoral fin muscles and fin area evolved in a correlated manner.
Larger pectoral fin muscles are linked to benthic feeding specialization.

Conclusions:

Evolutionary specialization along benthic/limnetic axes occurred multiple times in Lake Malawi cichlids.
Convergent evolution links habitat exploitation with locomotory morphology.
Pectoral fin muscle size is a key adaptation for benthic feeding in cichlids.