Morphofunctional analysis of the feeding apparatus in four Pomacentridae species: Dascyllus aruanus, Chromis retrofasciata, Chrysiptera biocellata and C. unimaculata

Abstract Pomacentrids display a significant biodiversity through a variety of sympatric species with various feeding habits. The use of ecomorphological methods, based on the study of skeletal and muscular structures of the feeding apparatus could result in a better understanding of the adaptive radiation of this family. Significant differences in teeth and in the shape and thickened areas of the different bones were observed. The strongest structures occur in species which had teeth characteristic of suction feeding, and the weakest structures in species with biting teeth.

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