CHANGES IN OTOLITH AREA - SENSORY AREA RATIO WITH BODY SIZE AND DEPTH

The ratio between the sensory areas of the sulcus acusticus and the sagittal otolith (S : O ratio) in the species Merluccius capensis and M. paradoxus was analyzed using a digital image processing system. Sagittal growth in both species is negatively allometric with respect to total fish length but is more negative in the deeper-dwelling species, Merluccius paradoxus. In contrast, the sulcus acusticus undergoes a relative increase in size, that is, the S : O ratio increases with fish length. There was a clear relationship between the increase in the S : O ratio and depth.