• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.83-88
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• 2014

An endemic Korean bitterling, Acheilognathus signifer, known as using freshwater mussels for its spawning activity, much prefers Lamprotula leai in Dalcheon stream (Goesan population) and Unio douglasiae sinuolatus in Gadaecheon (Danyang population) stream, Korea. The spawning pattern between two mussels and one bitterling was carried out in two populations from April to June, 2011 and 2013. L. leai in the Goesan population was bigger shell length and have more eggs, larvae or both with A. signifer than those of U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population. Also, A. signifer in the Goesan population appeared to have a longer ovipositor and lay ripen eggs more than those of A. signifer in the Danyang population. Glochidium, a larval stage, of some L. leai in the Goesan population was incubated in all the demibranch, whereas for all of U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population was found in the outer demibranch only. For L. leai in the Goesan population, the eggs, larvae or both of A. signifer were much more in the non-breeding mussels (giving no glochidium) than the breeding mussels having the glochidium. For U. d. sinuolatus in the Danyang population, in contrast, the non-breeding mussels have fewer eggs, larvae or both less than the breeding one.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.208-215
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• 2013

Host species preference of Acheilognathus signifer for spawning in freshwater mussels was investigated at the part of the Dalcheon Stream (site 1) and the Gaedaecheon Stream (site 2) in Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea from April to June (spawning period) 2011. The spawned mussel rate of A. signifer at the study site 1 (wild condition) was 63.6% in Lamprotula leai and 2.1% in Unio douglasiae sinuolatus. It was not found in Anodnta arcaeformis flavotincta and Lanceolaria grayana. The number of eggs, larvae, or both of A. signifer at the study site 1 (wild condition) was 1~41 ($12.0{\pm}9.21$) in L. leai and 6 in U. d. sinuolatus. As a result of experiment 1, A. signifer was only spawned in L. leai with 60% of spawned mussel rate and the number of eggs, larvae, or both was 1~19 ($6.8{\pm}5.44$). According to experiment 2, A. signifer was spawned in all mussels. Spawned mussel rate of A. signifer was 75.0% in L. leai, 42.9% in U. d. sinuolatus and 21.4% in A. a. flavotincta and the number of eggs, larvae, or both was 1~35 ($13.0{\pm}8.80$) in L. leai, 1~26 ($5.2{\pm}6.92$) in U. d. sinuolatus and 2~19 ($8.6{\pm}5.64$) in A. a. flavotincta. Experiment 3 showed A. signifer was solely spawned in L. leai and the number of egg was from 2 to 10 ($6.7{\pm}4.16$). This study confirmed A. singifer is not so much generalist as specialist. We found the most preference species for spawning in the mussels by A. signifer was L. leai.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.288-294
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• 2014

Host mussel utilization for spawning of the oily shinner, Sarcocheilichthys variegatus wakiyae (Pisces: Cyprinidae), from Korea was investigated in part of the Dalcheon (river) in Cheongcheon-myeon, Goesan-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea from April to June 2011, 2013. The non-synchronicity of mature and immature eggs obtained from females of S. v. wakiyae and the number of spawned eggs found was less than those in the mussels, suggesting that these fish may be batch spawners. Five species of freshwater mussels - Unio douglasiae sinuolatus, Lanceolaria grayana, Anodonata arcaeformis flavotincta, Lamprotula leai, Corbicula fluminea - were found at the survey area (wild conditions) but three species of freshwater mussels - A. a. flavotincta (oviposition rate, 50.0%), U. d. sinuolatus (16.2%), L. leai (11.1%) - were host of S. v. wakiyae. Spawning of S. v. wakiyae occurred mainly in the mantle cavity (wild conditions, 77.4%; experiment, 62.8%) of the mussels that were connected more to the inhalant siphon than the suprabranchial cavity (22.6%; 31.8%) that linked to the exhalant siphon. Bitterlings prefer to lay eggs in L. leai and S. v. wakiyae prefers A. a. flavotincta as a spawning host. These were considered to be the result of niche partitioning.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.74-81
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• 2013

Factors influencing spawning or respawning conditions of the bitterling, Acheilognathus signifer were investigated in the aquariums. Inducing the female spawning was more sensitive to the mussel than the male. The ovipositor of the female was periodically elongated and reduced from 4 to 6 days with the presence of mussel. During of the elongated state of the ovipositor was 1 to 2 days. As the result of natural spawning in the aquariums, it takes 1 to 3 days (mean 1.6) to spawn. The most important factor to respawn spawned females again was the mussel. It takes 11 to 53 days (mean 29.5) from extraction to reextraction of females which have elongated ovipositor. The egg numbers of reextraction were 2 to 41 (mean 19). This experiments showed the tendency the more standard length of females grows, the more the number of extracted eggs increases.