Life History Trait Plasticity and Adaptations to Stochastic Environmental Divergences: High Arctic Charr

该项目代表了一个跨学科的研究，以测试的假设，随机气候和栖息地的变化在北极红点鲑（Salvelinus alpinus）的生活史特征，适应机制和人口组成的发展中起着决定性的作用，在高北极淡水系统。该研究将地球物理观测与生态、回顾性和遗传研究相结合。北极红点鲑是研究环境因素如何影响鱼类生活史、种群结构和多样性的理想物种。 沙尔种群表现出巨大的生态可塑性和对恶劣环境的适应性。北极红点鲑是唯一的淡水鱼在高北极地区，并在其他地方，有广泛的生活史战略，包括溯河产卵，居民和内陆人口。在具有迁移性红点鲑的湖泊系统中，种群可能由幼鱼、小鲑鱼和成年迁移个体的混合物组成，也可能由小型居民、大型居民和大型原居民个体转化为溯河型。 要确定环境对表型、基因型和生活史的影响，就需要有关于环境条件、发育率、遗传信息、迁移率和极端条件下的死亡率的详细资料。在这项研究中，来自图勒，迪斯科，努克和Julianehaab，格陵兰岛和埃尔斯米尔岛，加拿大地区的湖泊系统的charr人口进行了比较。 所有系统中的Charr都经历高度随机的环境。 而适应性，遗传和行为机制与迁移是众所周知的鲑鱼在低纬度地区，这种机制在溯河产卵charr居住在高纬度环境的知识仍然是零碎的。一般来说，与季节性事件相关的机制必须是预先适应的。这种预适应机制是如何定时的，并受到不可预测的物理条件的影响，允许在高北极系统中的charr迁移将是本项目的主要课题。

This project represents an interdisciplinary study to test the hypothesis that stochastic climate and habitat variation play a decisive role in the development of life history traits, adaptation mechanisms and population composition in Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) in high Arctic freshwater systems. The study combines geophysical observations with ecological, retrospective and genetic studies. The circumpolar Arctic charr is ideal for the study of how environmental factors affect life history, population structure and diversity in fishes. Charr populations demonstrate a tremendous ecological plasticity and adaptations to harsh environments. Arctic charr is the only freshwater fish in the high Arctic and, as elsewhere, has a broad range of life-history strategies including anadromous, resident and landlocked populations. In lake systems with migrating charr, the population may consist of a mixture of parr, postsmolt and adult migratory individuals, as well as small-sized resident, large-sized resident and large formerly resident individuals transformed to anadromy. Determination of the effect of the environment upon phenotype, genotype and life history relies upon detailed information about environmental conditions, developmental rates, genetic information, migration rates and mortality in extreme conditions. In this study charr populations from lake systems from the Thule, Disko, Nuuk and Julianehaab, Greenland and Ellesmere Island, Canada areas will be compared. Charr in all systems experience highly stochastic environments. Whereas adaptive, genetic and behavioral mechanisms associated with migration are well known for salmonid fish at lower latitudes, knowledge about such mechanisms in anadromous charr inhabiting high latitude environments are still fragmentary. In general, mechanisms associated with seasonal events must be pre-adaptive. How such pre-adaptive mechanisms are timed with, and influenced by, the unpredictable physical conditions allowing for charr migration in high Arctic systems will be the main topic of this propject.