Zoological Studies

Vol. 51 No. 6, 2012

Geographical Variations in the Chemical Compositions of Veined Squid Loligo forbesi Statoliths

Chia-Hui Wang1,*, Audrey J. Geffen2,3, and Richard D.M. Nash

1Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, Taiwan
2Department of Biology, University of Bergen, P.O. Box 7803, Bergen 5020, Norway
3Institute of Marine Research, P.O. Box 1870 Nordnes, Bergen 5817, Norway

Chia-Hui Wang, Audrey J. Geffen, and Richard D.M. Nash (2012) The chemical composition of statoliths of the veined squid Loligo forbesi Steenstrup (Cephalopoda: Loliginidae) was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to determine geographical differences.  Statolith samples from the North Sea and Irish Sea were collected, and samples of 2 consecutive years from the Irish Sea were also included in the analyses to test temporal stability of the statolith chemical composition.  Seven trace elements were detected, including strontium, barium, lithium, lead, manganese, nickel, and cobalt, in decreasing order of abundance.  The elemental compositions of the statoliths significantly differed among sampling areas, and no significant difference in chemical composition was found between the 2 consecutive yearly Irish Sea samples.

Key words: Statolith, Chemical composition, Geographical variation, Squid, ICP-MS.

*Correspondence: Tel: 886-2-24622192 ext. 5029.  Fax: 886-2-24633920.  E-mail:chwang99@mail.ntou.edu.tw