A preliminary investigation of allozyme genetic variation and population structure in common pandora (Pagellus erythrinus, Sparidae) from Tunisian and Libyan coasts

The genetic characterization of natural populations of common pandora (Pagellus erythrinus, Sparidae) was studied using allozyme markers. Fish samples (n = 360) were collected from five locations along the Tunisian coasts and one from the Libyan coast. From eight enzymatic systems, 12 putative enzyme-coding loci were resolved, 8 of which were polymorphic at a level of 99%. F statistics indices revealed a significant departure from panmixia with heterozygote deficiencies and a slight genetic differentiation between samples. Neighbor-joining dendrogram constructed by Reynolds genetic distance showed that the populations sampled from the southeastern Mediterranean Sea were more differentiated from the others.