Genetic variability in Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus harengus): description of protein loci and population data

In the search for genetic markers in the Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus harengus) samples of eye, heart, liver, and skeletal muscle from a total of 160 specimens from the Skagerrak area, the Kattegat area, and the Baltic Sea were analyzed by starch gel electrophoresis. Specific staining for 24 enzymes resolved 37 loci and 25 of these were considered usable in routine population surveys. The proportion of polymorphic loci varied between 0.125 and 0.167, by the 95 % criterion for polymorphism, and between 0.292 and 0.458, by the 99 % criterion; average hererozygosity ranged from 0.068 to 0.073. There were small but statistically significant allele frequency differences among sampling areas, indicating a potential discrepancy between actual genetic relationships and classical taxonomic status. Comparisons with previously published data revealed no significant heterogeneity among samples from both sides of the Atlantic ocean at any of the three polymorphic loci which could be used for such comparisons.