The role of hypoxia in a fresh water environment, the ecological implications in a piscine predator-prey relationship
| dc.contributor.author | Robb, Tonia | en_US |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2007-06-01T19:20:53Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2007-06-01T19:20:53Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2000-09-01T00:00:00Z | en_US |
| dc.degree.discipline | Zoology | en_US |
| dc.degree.level | Master of Science (M.Sc.) | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | This study focused on the influence of body size of teleosts on tolerance and the implications in a predator and prey relationship. Body size limitations are evident in many predator and prey relationships and as a result there is the potential for variation in tolerance to hypoxia. It was predicted that prey would have a greater tolerance of hypoxia than its piscine predator. I suggested the difference in body size would account for this difference as some physiological evidence was found to supports this. Three physiological parameters, expected to increase in response to a reduction on dissolved oxygen, were measured in response to hypoxia and were used to determine tolerance. All of the physiological variables measured suggested a size sensitive relationship in which the smaller prey (fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas') was better able to withstand hypoxic conditions than the predatory yellow perch ('Perca flavescens'). Based on this size-sensitive relationship of tolerance to hypoxia, I developed a theoretical model based on the ideal free distribution to determine the distribution of a predator and prey population in response to fluctuating dissolved oxygen levels. (Abstract shortened by UMI.) | en_US |
| dc.format.extent | 6760135 bytes | |
| dc.format.extent | 184 bytes | |
| dc.format.mimetype | application/pdf | |
| dc.format.mimetype | text/plain | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1993/2316 | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | en_US |
| dc.rights | open access | en_US |
| dc.title | The role of hypoxia in a fresh water environment, the ecological implications in a piscine predator-prey relationship | en_US |
| dc.type | master thesis | en_US |