Differential correlates of diet and phylogeny on the shape of the premaxilla and anterior tooth in sparid fishes (Perciformes: Sparidae)

We explore the correlational patterns of diet and phylogeny on the shape of the premaxilla and anterior tooth in sparid fishes (Perciformes: Sparidae) from the western Mediterranean Sea. The premaxilla is less variable, and in spite of the presence of species-specific features, a common structural pattern is easily recognizable in all species (i.e. the ascending and the articular processes are fused in a single branch, as in many percoid fishes). In contrast, tooth shape is more variable, and different structural types can be recognized (e.g. canine-like or incisive). Coupling geometric morphometric and comparative methods we found that the relationship between shape, diet and phylogeny also differs between premaxilla and tooth. Thus, the shape of the premaxilla is significantly correlated with food type, whereas the shape of the teeth is not correlated with diet, and probably reflects the species phylogenetic relationships. Two biological roles, resistance against compressive forces generated in the buccal cavity and the size of the oral gape, would explain the ecomorphological patterns of the premaxilla. The premaxilla and anterior tooth appear to evolve at different rates (mosaic evolution) and represent an example of morphological traits belonging to the same functional unit but following uncoupled evolutionary pathways.