Ectothermic animals are strongly influenced by temperature. It is speculated that species face a trade-off between increased performance at a specific temperature versus being able to function over a broader range of temperatures but at a lower peak level. The balance of this trade-off – if it exists – may influence the environments that fish and other ectotherms inhabit and how they respond to climate change. A new paper by Julie Nati, Jan Lindstrom, Lewis Halsey and Shaun Killen shows that, across fish species, peak performance for aerobic scope is not linked to performance across a range of temperatures, suggesting that links between peak and thermal breadth for the capacity for aerobic metabolism may not affect responses to climate warming. Read more in on access paper here!:
http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/12/9/20160191
Nati, JH, Lindstrom, J, Halsey, LG, & Killen, SS. 2016. Is there a trade-off between peak performance and performance breadth across temperatures for aerobic scope in teleost fishes? Biology Letters. DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2016.0191
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physiology
Photo credit: Todd Radenbaugh
Recently I've been fortunate to receive funding from the European Research Council for a 5 year project which will examine the role of physiological traits in fish vulnerability to commercial fishing gears, with implications for fisheries-induced evolution. Basically, the main questions will be - do the physiological traits of some fish within a species make those individuals more prone to being captured? And if so, can this lead to evolutionary change in population via selection on such traits?
As part of this project I currently have three positions open in my lab:
A 4 year post doc position (deadline for application March 8, 2015). Find out more here.
A 3.5 year PhD position (deadline for application March 1, 2015). Find out more here.
A 2 year research technician position (deadline for application March 22, 2015). Find out more here.
All positions will involve a mix of lab and fieldwork. I am very excited to bring together a dynamic team for this project so please contact me if you are interest in any of the positions!