Dissertation Research: The Evolutionary Morphology and Bio- mechanics of Tetraodontiform Fishes

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Tetraodontiform fishes comprise a varied group of functional types, such as puffer fishes, boxfishes, giant oceanic sunfish. Graduate student Elizabeth Brainerd proposes functional and biomechanical performance tests on a variety of these fishes in the field and in laboratory settings. Data will be gathered using high-speed video recordings and electromyography (recordings of muscle activation patterns), and will provide a clearer picture of their respective efficiencies in defense, locomotion, and food gathering. The data acquired for different fish species will be compared relative to their evolutionary relationships in order to assess whether functional efficiency has increased during evolution or remained static or decreased. The proposed dissertation research is an ambitious and innovative study that will produce data of wide interest to ichthyologists. The conceptual implications of the study are broad, and the results will be of interest to functional morphologists and evolutionary biologists in general.