Marissa Reyes
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Karen Alofs
Research Mentor School/College/Department: School for Environment and Sustainability / SNRE
Program: UROPF
Session: Session 4 (1:40pm – 2:30pm)
Authors: Karen Alofs, Marissa Reyes
Abstract
Our study is examining the effect that increasing water temperatures have on the length of freshwater fish. Theory suggests that as the water temperatures increase, due to global warming, these species will decline. We are using two methods in order to explore this hypothesis: examining historical data and cataloging the specimens at the Research Museum Center. We have been recording the information from survey cards from the Institute for Fisheries Research (IFR). These cards contain data concerning the length and age group of freshwater fish species over several decades. The team has also spent time in the lab cataloging the wet collection that is housed in the museum. Once the catologing has been completed, we will measure length and use the scales of the fish to determine their age group by counting annual growth rings. I will focus on smallmouth bass. These fish are prone to live in warmer waters, but as the water continues to warm it increases their metabolism. Therefore, I predict that their length has decreased due to this increase in their metabolism without the compensation of a larger amount of food resources. The main reason for using the historical data in combination with the specimens is because if a similar pattern is found with fish within the same age group despite whether the data was taken when they were freshly caught or as a preserved specimen, that demonstrates that museum specimens are a viable way of collecting growth data. If that is the case, it opens up an abundance of future studies that can be done with specimens.
