RIG: Testing the Effect of Context on a Nest Association Mutualism of Stream Fishes in a Comparative-Advantage Biological Market Framework

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Most ecological studies of species interactions have focused on negative consequences such as competition, predation, and parasitism. However, different species also can interact in nature so as to enhance each other?s ability to reproduce, grow, or survive. The intensity and consequence of these mutualisms is hypothesized to be dependent on environmental conditions. This project will address that hypothesis through a study of a common interaction among fish species in North American rivers and streams. Nest association is a phenomenon whereby one or more species deposit their eggs in the nest of a host species and leave the care of the nest to the host. Although mostly considered mutually beneficial to the species involved, current understanding of nest association lags critically behind other mutually beneficial interactions known in nature. This research project will focus on Bluehead Chub and Mountain Redbelly Dace, a pair of fish species commonly found in the New River basin in Virginia. How species trade services in terms of egg production and nest maintenance to benefit each other?s reproduction and survival of offspring will be examined through in-stream experiments. In particular, this research will determine how important this trade is to each species when nesting material is scarce and when there is high threat from other fish that may eat eggs on the nest. Previous research suggests that nest association may be one of the key mechanisms by which many stream fishes continue to survive degradation to stream quality caused by urban and agricultural development. The results of this project will help resource managers working to maintain fish species diversity in stream habitats subject to disruption through various land uses and invasive species. This project will provide research experiences for undergraduate students from groups underrepresented in biology and ecology, including students from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, an under-resourced university with over 90% African American student enrollment.