The contribution of behaviour to the population and fisheries ecology of the American lobster Homarus americanus

个体的行为及其随空间和时间的变化会影响种群的结构和动态，但传统的动物种群研究和模型方法并未明确考虑到这一点。最近，使用“基于个体”的模型来研究动物种群的情况明显增加，种群特征是行为的结果（s.l。）（例如，运动，成长）和离散个体的相互作用。这些以个人为基础的方法在很大程度上阐明了人口模式和进程的本质。例如，在海洋环境中，基于个体的空间显性生物物理模型在预测不同种类的无脊椎动物和鱼类的幼虫扩散方面显示出相当大的潜力，并揭示了幼虫的行为可以显著限制从一个区域的扩散（即增加滞留），这反过来又可以显著影响人口和遗传连通性。这些生物物理模型是根据环境的物理特性（例如，水流、温度）和有关物种个体的生物学特性（例如，在不同温度下的发育、死亡率、游泳行为）建立的。尽管有这些重要的进展，行为在调节种群模式和动态中的作用对大多数物种来说仍然很大程度上是未知的。******在这个发现基金中，我提议把我已经建立的关于海洋无脊椎动物表型地理变异的原因和后果的研究项目，带到对美国龙虾（Homarus americanus）的种群结构和连通性的研究中去。美国龙虾在陆地价值和就业方面支持着加拿大最重要的渔业。我和我的学生将量化以下方面的变化：(1)胚胎发育率，(2)孵化时的胚胎大小，(3)幼虫游动行为，(4)幼虫定居行为，在同一窝（即同一雌性）的个体之间，来自同一地点的不同窝（即不同的雌性），以及来自整个物种范围内不同地点的不同窝。我们将进行实验室和实地研究，以解决有关这种变异的机制和进化意义的不同假设，并将使用基于个体的生物物理模型来评估其对幼虫扩散和管理区域之间连通性的影响。这项研究将为美国龙虾早期表型变异的模式、机制、功能和人口统计学后果提供新的认识和理解。它将促进我们对行为和进化生态学对动物种群的贡献的理解，并将为收获者和管理者提供有关龙虾种群结构和管理区域之间连通性的相关信息。

The behaviour (sensu lato) of individuals, and its variation over space and time, affects the structure and dynamics of populations, but is not explicitly considered by the traditional approaches used to study and model animal populations. There has recently been a marked increase in the use of “individual-based” models to study animal populations, where the characteristics of populations emerge as a result of the behaviour (s.l.) (e.g., movements, growth) and interaction of discrete individuals. These individual-based approaches have shed considerable light on demographic patterns and processes in nature. In the marine environment, for example, individual-based spatially explicit bio-physical models have shown considerable potential for predicting larval dispersal in different species of invertebrates and fishes, and have revealed that larval behaviour can markedly limit dispersal (i.e., increase retention) from an area, which in turn can markedly affect demographic and genetic connectivity. These biophysical models are based on physical properties of the environment (e.g., current, temperature) and the biology of individuals of the species of interest (e.g., development at different temperatures, mortality rates, swimming behaviour). Despite these important advances, the role of behaviour in modulating patterns and dynamics of populations is still largely unknown for most species. ******In this Discovery Grant I propose to bring my established research program on the causes and consequences of geographic variation in the phenotype of marine invertebrates to the study of stock structure and connectivity in the American lobster, Homarus americanus, which supports the single-most important fishery in Canada, in terms of landed value and employment. My students and I will quantify variation in i) embryo development rate, ii) embryo size at hatch, iii) larval swimming behaviour, and iv) larval settlement behaviour, among individuals of the same brood (i.e., a same female), different broods (i.e., different females) from the same location, and different broods from different locations throughout the species' range. We will conduct lab and field studies to address different hypotheses concerning the mechanisms and evolutionary significance of this variation, and will use an individual-based bio-physical model to assess its impact on larval dispersal and connectivity between management areas. This research will provide new knowledge and understanding of the patterns, mechanisms, functions and demographic consequences of phenotypic variation in early life stages of American lobsters. It will advance our understanding of the contribution of behavioural and evolutionary ecology to animal populations, and will provide information that is germane to harvesters and managers concerning lobster stock structure and connectivity between management areas.