Data from: Ecomorphological adaptation in three mudskippers (Teleostei: Gobioidei: Gobiidae) from the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman

We hypothesise that the body shapes of three mudskipper species
(Boleophthalmus dussumieri, Periophthalmus waltoni, and Scartelaos tenuis)
are ecomorphological adaptations to different epi- and infaunal habitats.
We investigated: (i) the association between burrow density and selected
ecological variables; (ii) the phylogenetic relationships among these
species, based on two mtDNA and one nDNA markers; (iii) their geometric
morphometrics and ancestral shape reconstructions, based on
two-dimensional landmark configurations; and (iv) their body
surface-to-volume ratios (SAV), based on a geometric model. Boleophthalmus
dussumieri and S. tenuis are more closely related, and more elongated than
P. waltoni; the body of S. tenuis also has a higher SAV, and its elongated
shape appears to be a divergent trait. P. waltoni is found in a wide range
of conditions, including vegetated habitats; B. dussumieri is associated
with low-energy conditions and fine unvegetated deposits; and S. tenuis is
associated with high-energy conditions and coarser, non-cohesive
sediments. These results suggest that body elongation in Scartelaos
species is a divergent locomotory adaptation to marine habitats
characterised by semi-liquid and less cohesive sediments. The more compact
body shape of Periophthalmus species is hypothesised to have evolved from
a gobionelline ancestor, and is proposed to be a preadaptation to
subaerial locomotion in semi-terrestrial habitats.