Fitness is in part determined by the success of prey capture, often achieved in marine piscivores using teeth to capture and process prey. In ram feeding piscivores, a pattern of monognathic heterodonty has been observed where tooth size either increases posteriorly ( Scomberomorus maculatus ), or anteriorly ( Carcharhinus limbatus ), with exceptions such as Trichiurus lepturus and Sphyraena barracuda which have large anterior fangs. Tooth size and placement, as related to prey capture, was examined in Atlantic Spanish Mackerel ( S. maculatus ), Great Barracuda ( S. barracuda ), Atlantic Cutlassfish ( T. lepturus ), and the Blacktip shark ( C. limbatus ) by quantifying tooth occlusion along the jaw. Percent gape at occlusion in S. maculatus decreased anteriorly in a linear fashion, indicating occlusion from posterior to anterior. Therefore, prey initially contact the posterior teeth with high puncture pressure during high velocity strikes, capitalizing the region of greatest bite force. For S. barracuda and T. lepturus , posterior teeth and premaxillary fangs occlude at similar percent gapes (within 10%). The premaxillary fangs are likely used for initial capture due to the high angular velocity of the anterior section of the jaw and then for cutting, due to their laterally compressed shape. In C. limbatus all teeth occluded within a narrow range of 1.4–8.8% gape, indicating that all teeth meet at almost complete jaw closure. Simultaneous puncture of teeth prevents prey escape while maximizing the cutting area during head shaking. Thus, various tooth size and dentition patterns may yield similar success in prey capture, serving the same function.

中文翻译：

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四种食鱼鱼类的牙齿长度和咬合：抓住猎物

适应度部分取决于捕获猎物的成功，通常在使用牙齿捕获和处理猎物的海洋食鱼动物中实现。在公羊喂养食鱼动物中，观察到一种单颌异齿动物的模式，其中牙齿大小要么向后增加（Scomberomorus maculatus），要么向前增加（Carcharhinuslimbatus），但有大前牙的 Trichiurus lepturus 和 Sphyraena barracuda 除外。与猎物捕获相关的牙齿大小和位置在大西洋西班牙鲭鱼 (S. maculatus)、大梭鱼 (S. barracuda)、大西洋弯刀鱼 (T. lepturus) 和黑鳍鲨 (C.limbatus) 中进行了量化检查沿下颌的牙齿咬合。S. maulatus 闭塞处的张开百分比以线性方式向前减少，表明从后到前的闭塞。所以，在高速撞击期间，猎物最初以高穿刺压力接触后牙，利用最大咬合力的区域。对于 S. barracuda 和 T. lepturus ，后牙和上颌前牙的咬合百分比相似（在 10% 以内）。由于颌前部的高角速度，前上颌尖牙可能用于初始捕获，然后由于其横向压缩形状而用于切割。在 C.limbatus 中，所有牙齿都在 1.4-8.8% 的狭窄范围内咬合，这表明所有牙齿在几乎完全闭合的下颌时会合。同时刺破牙齿可防止猎物逃跑，同时在摇头时最大化切割区域。因此，不同的牙齿大小和牙列模式可能会在猎物捕获中产生类似的成功，发挥相同的功能。