secondary lateral line??

[Stella]

OK I just noticed the weirdest thing...

Looking at my shortjaw kokopu so closely I may go blind, I am seeing a row of tiny pores running along the top outer edges of the back, roughly halfway between the lateral line and the center of the back, starting at the head and almost meeting at the dorsal fin (kokopu have the dorsal fin very far back on the body).

I looked as closely on my bigger giant kokopu, but that one doesn't seem to have these pores.

Does anyone know of other fish having other pores along the body? Most native fish, particularly those that go to sea, have quite obvious pores around the head, and of course the lateral line, but I have never seen any reference to additional pores on the body...

[lmsmith]

Sorry, Stella. Seems like you might be the resident expert on this one.

[Stella]

:lol: and I tell you, it is a problem!

I wasn't asking about other native fish, but ANY fish, I have never seen anything like this!

Starting at Massey today so going to bug all the fishy lecturers if they have heard any reference to shortjaws having these other pores.

[cadeusus]

Stella

It is not unheard of for fish species to have more than one lateral line. It depends on the embryologicla development of the fish and how and where the neuromast precursors migrate to. Eigenmannia species have 3 separate phases of neuromast development and migration - a ventral line, a midline and a dorsal line which develop as larvae and juvenile stages. The lungfish has 2 distinct lateral lines reported ventrolateral and dorsolateral. The upper one linking to the 3 channels on the head (above the eye, between the eys and the mouth and under the mouth [mandibular branch]) with the lower lateral line joining to the mandibular branch. So I suppose long story short is don;t be surprised...