생명과학과에서 아래와 같이 세미나를 실시합니다.

많은 관심과 참여 부탁드립니다.

주관: 기초과학연구소(자율운영 중점연구소지원사업)

일시: 2023년 12월 7일 목요일 17:00

장소: 원천관 242호

연사: 김석현 교수(강원대학교 생명과학과)

주제: Phenotypic variation and reproductive success of a keystone stream fish, bluehead chub: an application of PIT antenna and genetic parentage methods

A key topic and challenge in behavioral ecology are to quantify individual variation and its impact on fitness consequences. However, studying reproduction in the wild is notoriously difficult for small-bodied aquatic species due to their cryptic spawning. Here, reproductive ecology of bluehead chub (Nocomis leptocephalus), a nest-building freshwater fish, was studied to characterize phenotypic variation and its effect on fitness consequences. Direct field observations throughout a spawning season revealed that temporal variation and spatial synchrony in spawning activities were linked to stream temperature and flow conditions, and there was much variation in nest size, shape, and construction behavior. In addition, an automated tracking (PIT tag) and genetic parentage techniques (microsatellite loci) were used to investigate how individual difference led to variation in reproductive success using a field experiment and tracking individuals in a natural stream. Contrary to prevalent patterns observed in many animals, larger body size was not always a factor leading to more successful reproduction, particularly in males. Instead, reproductive success depended more heavily on nest size and behavior. Furthermore, behavioral tactics that increased reproductive success differed by sex, in which nest sharing was advantageous for males and visiting more nests for spawning was advantageous for females. These findings illustrate that reproductive success was affected by a complex interplay of environmental conditions, phenotypic variation and behavior in this keystone species, whose nests are also used by other fish species in the Southeast USA.