A Shot in the Dark: Comparative Morphology of the Bioluminescent Tube Organs in Tubeshoulders (Platytroctidae)

Bioluminescence, light produced by a living organism, is a key innovation in the diversification of deep-sea fishes. It is useful for a myriad of behaviors and interactions in deep sea organisms, including communication, predation, camouflage via counterillumination, and predator avoidance. In this study, we investigate the deep-sea tubeshoulders (Platytroctidae), fishes that possess a unique postcleithral tube organ associated with their shoulder girdle that excretes bioluminescent fluid, a feature that unites all members of this poorly studied family. Many tubeshoulders also possess additional bioluminescent structures and luminescent tissues, including a series of tube organs on the caudal peduncle unique to Platytroctes apus that are hypothesized to be similar in structure and function to the postcleithral tube organ. Herein, we present the first histological analysis of the caudal tube organs in P. apus and use histological methods to investigate the morphological diversity in postcleithral tube organ structure across 14 species of platytroctids, representing 10 of 13 valid genera. We show that the postcleithral tube organ generally exhibits a conserved morphology across genera and species, however, several species-specific anatomical differences are noted. In some individuals, we observe the presence of luminescent-fluid cells within the tube organ in various stages of development, which may provide evidence for inferring the type of secretory gland found in this novel bioluminescent light organ. We also show that the structure of the caudal tube organs in P. apus are similar to the postcleithral tube organ present in all members of Platytroctidae, likely indicating a similar luminescent fluid emission function.