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Morphometric disparity in European lineages of gobies (Gobiidae)
Bílá, Kristina Beatrix ; Vukićová, Jasna (advisor) ; Frýdlová, Petra (referee)
Gobies (Actinopterygii: Gobiiformes), are a remarkable group of fishes, not only because they are the most species-rich order of bony fishes (Teleostei), but also due to their extraordinary ability to colonize different types of environments. As a consequence, they evolved a variety of morphological shapes. The aim of this work was to reveal whether the European evolutionary lineages of gobies evolved ecomorphs through repeated colonisation of the same types of microhabitats, i.e. whether morphology (body shape) is influenced by niche, and what role convergent evolution plays in adaptation to different types of environments. For this purpose i made quantification and comparison of body shape using the methods of geometric morphometry. The results of this work showed that convergent evolution has occurred in four out of the six ecological groups of studied gobies, i.e., that their shape is influenced by the environment they inhabit and their way of life, regardless of lineage affiliation and phylogenetic relationships. Convergent evolution has been revealed in hyperbenthic, nektonic, marine epibenthic and freshwater epibenthic species. In contrast, convergent evolution has not been proven in euryhaline epibenthic species, nor in cryptobenthic species of gobies. Key words: geometric morphometry,...
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