Larval Dispersal and Retention Among Sub-populations of Coral Reef Fishes: A Multi-Technique Approach

种群连通性-地理上分离的群体通过扩散联系在一起的程度-是海洋种群动态的一个关键参数。连通率决定了新栖息地的殖民模式，种群对收获的弹性以及海洋保护区（MPAs）的设计。然而，对海洋生物中的交换率进行量化是极其困难的，因为成年生物的出生起源几乎总是未知的。缺乏这方面的知识主要是由于难以对那些产生大量小型中上层后代、初期死亡率很高的鱼种进行标记-再捕获研究。研究人员将采用一种多技术方法，结合使用耳石的代际同位素标记和基于高变DNA标记的亲子关系分析对鱼胚胎进行大规模标记，以测量珊瑚礁鱼类的扩散距离。在此基础上，对两个物种（叉双锯鱼Amphiprion percula和叉双锯鱼A. polymnus）在巴布亚新几内亚Kimbe Bay的3年以上。该项目涉及耳石地球化学，珊瑚鱼生态学和种群遗传学方面的跨学科合作。

Population connectivity - the degree to which geographically-separated groups are linked by dispersal - is a critical parameter in the dynamics of marine populations. Connectivity rates determine colonization patterns of new habitats, the resiliency of populations to harvest, and the design of marine protected areas (MPAs). Quantifying exchange rates in marine organisms is, however, extremely difficult because natal origins of adults are almost invariably unknown. This lack of knowledge is primarily due to the difficulty of conducting mark-recapture studies in species that are characterized by the production of large numbers of small pelagic offspring that suffer high initial mortality rates. The investigators will employ a multi-technique approach that combines mass-marking of fish embryos using inter-generational isotopic labeling of otoliths and paternity analyses based on hypervariable DNA markers to measure dispersal distances of coral reef fishes. Population connectivity will be estimated in two species (Amphiprion percula and A. polymnus) over 3 years in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea. The project involves an interdisciplinary partnership with expertise in otolith geochemistry, reef fish ecology, and population genetics.