Original Article

Geographical variability and allometry of morphological traits in Siberian taimen Hucho taimen (Salmonidae): Case study on fish from the Amur and Kama Rivers

  • Pavel B. Mikheev ,
  • Ryan Easton ,
  • Fasil Taddese ,
  • Lei Li
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  • 1Russian Scientific Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography, Khabarovsk branch-KhabarovskNIRO, Khabarovsk, Russia 

    2Perm State University, Perm, Russia 

    3University of Otago, Zoology Department, Dunedin, New Zealand 

    4Department of Wildlife and Aquatic Resources, Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Gaborone, Botswana 

    5Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, School of Fisheries and Wildlife, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia 

    6Heilongjiang River Fishery Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Heilongjiang River Basin Fishery Resources and Environment Scientific Observation and Experiment Station of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Harbin 150070, China 

    7Fuyuan Observation and Experimental Station of National Fishery Resources and Environment, Harbin 150070, China

Pavel B. Mikheev

Online published: 2025-04-24

Abstract

Siberian taimen Hucho taimen (Pallas, 1773) is a broadly distributed and popular sport fish with high economic value. However, low abundance and hard-to-reach habitat make the Siberian taimen a relatively understudied species. Here we describe the morphological variability of two size groups of Siberian taimen juveniles from the eastern (Amur River basin) and western (Kama River basin) parts of the species distribution. The largest morphological differentiation of Siberian taimen juveniles was observed at the inter-basin level. In the Amur River basin, Siberian taimen juveniles also differed morphologically even at sites located at a distance of 20 km from each other, which may be explained by a small home-range inhabitation of juveniles leading to the formation of their morphotype determined by local environmental conditions. The pattern of allometry varies in taimen from different rivers, which could be related to the ontogenetic shift of ecological niches and the level of heterogeneity of the river environment.

Cite this article

Pavel B. Mikheev , Ryan Easton , Fasil Taddese , Lei Li . Geographical variability and allometry of morphological traits in Siberian taimen Hucho taimen (Salmonidae): Case study on fish from the Amur and Kama Rivers[J]. Zoological Systematics, 2025 , 50(2) : 170 -179 . DOI: 10.11865/zs.2025207

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