Meeting Abstract
P3.60 Jan. 6 Repeatability and correlations of swimming performance with morphology in guppies (Poecilia reticulata) OUFIERO, Christopher E.*; GARLAND, JR., Theodore; Univ. of California, Riverside; Univ. of California, Riverside coufi001@student.ucr.edu
The purpose of this study was to assess the magnitude and consistency of individual variation in multiple measures of swimming performances as well as body size and shape in males of 10th-generation, lab-reared, Trinidadian guppies (N = 24). We also examined correlations between performance measures and between performance and body size or shape. We measured burst speed (Uburst) and critical swimming speed (Ucrit) during separate tests in a flow tunnel by ramping the velocity of the water over a predetermined time interval (Uburst = ~0.30cm/s-2, Ucrit = 4.5 cms-1/5min). C-start performance was measured by startling the fish and filming the response at 500 frames/sec. We also anesthetized the fish to obtain body mass and measure standard length, total length, and body depth with digital calipers under a dissecting microscope. Each individual was measured three times for each trait and Pearson’s r (interclass correlation coefficient) was used as a measure of repeatability with statistical significance judged using 2-tailed P < 0.05. All morphometric traits were repeatable between the three measurement trials (e.g., mass between trials 1 and 2: r = 0.784, p < 0.001; between trials 2 and 3: r = 0.798, p < 0.001). Uburst was not significantly repeatable between the first two trials (r = 0.353, p = 0.091), but was between trials 2 and 3 (r = 0.541, p = 0.006). Conversely, Ucrit was repeatable between all trials (1 & 2: r = 0.737, p < 0.001; 2 & 3: r = 0.578, p = 0.003). C-start analysis is still in progress. Uburst and Ucrit were significantly correlated (r = 0.443, p = 0.030); however, at present there is no significant correlation between performance and any of the body size or shape variables. Supported by NSF grant DEB-0416085.
