Fig. 6

Pectoral fin ray counts of the little skate during development. Blue points indicate number of fin rays in cleared and stained specimens, purple indicates number of HoxA11 expression stripes in specimens prepared by in situ hybridization, and gray points indicate number of fin rays from radiographs of adult specimens. After 26 weeks of development, expression of HoxA11 turns off and cartilaginous condensations are present in the developing fin rays, with a total number of 60–69 fin rays per individual. Development in weeks is indicated under developmental stage. N = 4, st. 28; N = 5, st. 29; N = 5, st 30; N = 5, st. 31; N = 5, st. 32; N = 6, st. 33; N = 7, Pre-Hatch; N = 3, Adult