Abstract:
Comparative anatomical studies of nerves alone, or combined with those of bone and cartilage, are rare in ichthyology because of lack of a reliable, repeatable protocol for preparing specimens that demonstrate all three character systems. We present a method for enzyme clearing and staining whole fish specimens for simultaneous demonstration of bone, cartilage, and nerves. Nerves are stained dark blue with Sudan Black B following alcian blue-alizarin red S staining. Our protocol for Sudan Black B staining differs from others in concentration of Sudan Black B solution, length of time in that solution, and method of differentiation.
