We verified pre-settlement Sphoeroides spengleri (Bandtail Puffer) larvae by genetic sequencing and herein describe their morphology and pigmentation. The lead author collected the specimens on a North Carolina beach among stranded Sargassum, which may represent the first record of this species in the Sargassum community along the Mid-Atlantic Bight. Cleared and stained specimens exhibited a declivitous vertebral column that has been reported in few other members of the Tetraodontiformes.
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31 August 2023
Description of the Pre-Settlement Larvae of Sphoeroides spengleri (Pisces: Tetraodontidae)
Robert E. Schmidt,
Jeremy J. Wright,
Erin R. McMullin
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Southeastern Naturalist
Vol. 22 • No. 3
September 2023
Vol. 22 • No. 3
September 2023