A Portable Underwater Assessment Unit

如何解释非洲五大湖慈鲷类物种形成的空前速度，仍然是一个令人兴奋的悬而未决的科学问题。慈鲷物种形成的惊人速度为这些鱼类生活的湖泊赢得了一个贴切的绰号“达尔文的梦幻池塘”。“这些鱼本身有着令人眼花缭乱的颜色、形状和大小，并表现出各种各样的行为。了解鱼类辐射的多样性和范围已经占据了许多进化生物学家，包括要求移动的水下评估单元的调查员。Balshine博士和她的学生自1997年以来一直在坦噶尼喀湖（赞比亚海岸）进行研究。该团队最初用于水下研究的设备已不再运行，现在迫切需要更换，以确保研究人员的健康和安全。所要求的移动的水下评估工具将促进广泛的行为和生态实地研究项目，这些项目与麦克马斯特大学正在进行的受控实验室实验相互联系。该设备将使一名水生行为生态学家及其大型生产研究小组能够继续并扩大他们对偏远的坦噶尼喀湖慈鲷鱼的长期研究，坦噶尼喀湖是世界上第二深的湖，也是非洲五大湖中最古老的湖。这一脆弱的淡水生态系统目前正受到全球变化的威胁，该地区的科学设施从简陋到不存在。所要求的设备将支持基础探索研究（行为生态学，动物行为，动物行为，神经生理学，分子生物学），跨学科研究（探索全球变化和环境影响的影响），并将有助于在未来5年内培训35名学生和许多科学家。

Explaining the unprecedented speed of speciation observed among the cichlid fishes of the Great Lakes of Africa remains an exciting outstanding scientific question. The amazing rate of cichlid speciation has earned the lakes in which these fish live the apt nickname "Darwin's Dream Ponds." The fish themselves come in a dazzling array of colours, shapes and sizes and demonstrate a spectacular variety of behaviours. Understanding this diversity and extent of the fish radiation has occupied many an evolutionary biologist including the investigator making this request for a Mobile Underwater Assessment Unit. Dr. Balshine and her students have maintained a research presence in Lake Tanganyika (on the Zambian shores) since 1997. The equipment that this team originally relied on for their underwater research is no longer operational and replacement is now desperately needed to ensure both health and safety of the researchers. The requested mobile underwater assessment tools will facilitate a wide range of behavioural and ecological field based research projects that interconnect with ongoing controlled laboratory experiments based at McMaster University. The equipment will allow an aquatic behavioural ecologist and her large productive research group to continue, and expand their long-term study of cichlid fishes in remote Lake Tanganyika, the second deepest lake in the world and the oldest of the African Great Lakes. This fragile freshwater ecosystem is currently under threat from global change and the scientific facilities in the area range from rudimentary to non-existent. The equipment requested will support both basic Discovery research (behavioural ecology, animal behaviour, animal behavior, neurophysiology, molecular biology), interdisciplinary research (exploring effects of global change and environmental impacts), and will contribute to the training of over 35 students, and many fellow scientists over the next 5 years.