Title
Measuring Variation in Body Morphology and Life History Traits in Brook Stickleback (Culaea inconstans), Eastern Washington, USA
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Ross Black & Dr. Paul Spruell
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Document Type
Oral Presentation
Publication Date
Spring 5-18-2020
Department
Biology
Abstract
For freshwater ecosystems, invasive species are considered a major threat to biodiversity, and pose a challenge to those attempting to advance management strategies aimed at conserving natural populations. An invasive species’ ability to successfully invade a new ecosystem may be influenced by phenotypic plasticity, flexibility of life history traits, ability to migrate/disperse and other factors. Brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) (BSB) have been a concern in the area since 1999 when they were discovered in water bodies on Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge (TNWR). BSB expansion into wetlands that had been historically free of any fish species is particularly important due to use of TNWR by migratory waterfowl, as they compete for the same resources. The purpose of this project was to describe the effects of abiotic and biotic factors on BSB life history traits, and body morphology. BSB were collected at sites throughout the Rock Creek drainage along with environmental measures, measurements on the fish were be taken in the lab. Results are still pending, however, investigating how BSB may be utilizing rapid evolution to succeed in new environments may aid in management and will further the general understanding of rapid evolution in invasive fish species.
Recommended Citation
Crytser, Lily Elizabeth, "Measuring Variation in Body Morphology and Life History Traits in Brook Stickleback (Culaea inconstans), Eastern Washington, USA" (2020). 2020 Symposium Oral Presentations. 14.
https://dc.ewu.edu/srcw_2020_oral_presentations/14
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
