Exploring the biological information content of growth increments in otoliths of Recent and fossil species of the Gobiidae (Teleostei)

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Bettina Reichenbacher
• Subject Area: Palaeontology
• Term: from 2016 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 328193571

• Final Report Year: 2017

Final Report Abstract

Conclusions: (1) Determination of life history characteristics is principally possible both in Recent and fossil goby species, but would require much more time and efforts. (2) Only very well preserved fossil otoliths can be used for such an approach because diagenetic overprint results in unclear growth lines that are difficult to interpret. (3) Very small otoliths (< 2mm) cannot be processed with the available techniques. Therefore it is currently not possible to investigate differences in the life history traits of normal-sized and dwarf gobies.

Publications

• (2017). How to produce high quality thin sections of fish otoliths without costly equipment. 15th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Vertebrate Palaeontologists, Munich, Germany. – Zitteliana, 91: 40
  Gut, C., Kevrekidis, C., Gholami, Z., Khan, A., Reichenbacher, B.