PODOLSKY, R D; University of North Carolina: Integrating development and environment to model reproductive performance in natural populations of a marine gastropod

Marine environments pose challenges to the study of invertebrate early life-histories, owing to the physical heterogeneity and inaccessibility of many habitats and the prevalence of early dispersal stages. Much of what is known about performance at early stages (gametes, embryos, and larvae) has therefore been gained from studies in the laboratory. I review efforts to place laboratory performance measures into a relevant field context in studies of marine fertilization and early development. I also outline an integrative approach to the study of field reproductive performance in a marine intertidal gastropod. Embryos experience conditions in the field that result not only in high variance in development temperature but also in frequent exposure to thermal stress. The approach involves characterization and tracking of variable field development temperatures, laboratory measures of performance under conditions that mimic field conditions, and measurement of adult reproductive patterns. Integrating laboratory and field information allows the assessment of reproductive performance at two stages of the life-cycle: embryo developmental performance in response to variation in environmental conditions, and adult performance in the timing of reproduction as a response to such variation.