administrator: March 2008 Archives

Introduction:

Variation in egg size is adaptive if it increases fitness in the environments encountered. We have found that egg size variation in another Cyprinodontid from South America (Austrolebias nigripinnis), partly depends on variation between males. We want to survey egg size variation in Aphanius vladykovi (Cyprinodontidae) which is an endemic species found in a restricted area of Iran. This species is attractive and there is little information on this species beyond the original description (Coad 1988) and some brief biological observations (Coad & Keivany 2000).

Aim:

The goal of project is to investigate how egg size and clutch size variation depend on the mating partners. It can depend on differences between females, between males, or both.

We also want to investigate some fitness-related traits possibly related to egg size.

Questions:

1- Is there any correlation between fish length and egg size?

2-Is there any relationship between egg size and time until hatching?

3-Is there any relationship between egg size and fry size at hatching?

Requirements:

We are looking for a Msc-student to work on this project. The student has to breed the fish, take care of eggs and fry. Experience with digital photography is an advantage. Duration of project is 6 months. The student can start immediately.

Contact:

M.Moshgani, IBL, Animal Ecology

Email: m.moshgani@biology.leidenuniv.nl