Meristic Variation in 'Sebastes' (Scorpaenidae), with an Analysis of Character Association and Bilateral Pattern and their Significance in Species Separation

摘要

The report presents meristic data for nearly all of the known species of Sebastes. Rudimentary caudal ray counts tend to be higher in more active species. The number of caudal rays supported by the hypurals is consistently 14, whereas the number of branched caudal rays varies between 11 and 13. Vertebral counts and most fin-ray counts tend to be lower in species or populations in warmer latitudes, except for pectoral ray counts which tend to have an opposite geographic pattern. The author proposes that intrasample associations between meristic features are evidence of sampling heterogeneity.