Title:
Can female
fish program their offspring to avoid predators?
PROJECT
DESCRIPTION:
Predation is an important ecological factor
that is known to have effects on a broad range of traits, particularly
behaviour. Individuals often reduce activity and hide more often to avoid
predators. While predation is a powerful selective force, and genes can
determine antipredator behaviour, less is known about the role of maternal
‘programming’ to fine tune the behaviour of her young to short-term
fluctuations in predation risk. In this experiment will manipulate the maternal
environment of female guppies in the laboratory and test whether mothers can
adaptively program their offspring to better avoid predators. Following on from
a developmental experiment looking at the effect of risk early in ontogeny, we
will re-dose mothers using olfactory alarm cues to simulate predation risk. Focussing
on activity rates, among other behavioural traits, we will evaluate the
relative importance of early development of the mother vs. more recent
information in defining the phenotypes of offspring, and if the maternal
manipulation restricts their later life behavioural flexibility.
While this project focusses on behaviour, the
student may change the focus to other traits to better suit their interests.
Options include life history traits (e.g. growth rates and fecundity),
morphology or sexual traits (e.g. colouration and sexual behaviours), among
others.
SUPERVISOR:
David Mitchell (PhD Candidate), Assoc. Prof. Pete A
Biro, Dr. Christa Beckmann
Contact:
David Mitchell,
Email: midavi@deakin.edu.au
RELEVANT
LITERATURE:
TECHNIQUES
INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT:
Animal husbandry/fish keeping. EthoVision tracking
software and behavioural observations. Anaesthetising and photographing fish. Statistics.
REQUIRED
SKILLS AND ABILITIES:
Diligence, some
statistical basics, interest in behavioural ecology.
Notice that the internship is at Deakin University, Victoria, Australia.