Early pigmented cell development and body color change of Platax teira

Platax teira has a particular pigmentation pattern. We used stereo microscope and inverted fluorescence microscope to continuously observe its post-embryonic development, and observed the morphology, body color changes, pigment cell types and distribution characteristics at different developmental stages, then obtained the early developmental growth curve. The results show that the growth rate of P. teira of 1–24 days after hatching (DAH) was relatively slow, but having reached a rapid growth period since 26 DAH. In addition, the body surface of P. teira showed obvious color differences at different post-embryonic development stages. On 14 DAH, the red and yellow pigment cells developed significantly and became larger. On 28 DAH, the ventral fins, anal fins and dorsal fins were fully covered with pigments, mainly red pigments cells. The melanocytes and red pigment cells were intertwined on the body surface. On 21 DAH, the first obvious black stripe passed through the eye. On 30 DAH, white spots appeared on the abdomen, and a second black stripe appeared behind the gill cover. On 32 DAH, the second black stripe was obvious, and a slight stress reaction began to appear. Iridescent cells began to appear on the gill cover and below. On 46 DAH, a black stripe appeared on the head, trunk and tail, as well as the dorsal, anal and pelvic fins turned black. The development of juvenile was complete and the body color was similar to that of adult fish. After stress, the body color of juvenile turned black and the melanocytes were disperse and interwoven, almost covering up the yellow and red melanocytes. The results provide basic data for further studying the body color regulation mechanism of P. teira.