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

种群连通性——地理上分离的种群通过分散联系在一起的程度——是海洋种群动态的一个关键参数。连接率决定了新栖息地的殖民模式、种群对收获的恢复能力和海洋保护区的设计。然而，对海洋生物的交换率进行量化是极其困难的，因为成年生物的出生来源几乎都是未知的。这种缺乏知识的主要原因是，在以生产大量小型远洋后代为特征的物种中进行标记再捕获研究很困难，这些后代的初始死亡率很高。研究人员将采用一种多技术方法，结合使用耳石代际同位素标记对鱼胚胎进行大量标记和基于高可变DNA标记的父系分析来测量珊瑚礁鱼类的扩散距离。将在3年内对巴布亚新几内亚金贝湾的两个物种（圆角虾和多角虾）的种群连通性进行评估。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伙伴关系。

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.