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Invertebrate Mexico
Introduction
Current Knowldege
Hypothesis and Questions
Study site
Baseline Population Study
Daily Rhythm
Goby Hole Densities
Gobies per hole
Size of goby and shrimp
Predicted Results
Predator Exclusion Study
Cage Construction
Set-up in Bay
Predator Exclusion Study
Rotation timetable
Predicted Results
Discussion
Acknowledgement
References


Questions / Hypotheses

My research will attempt to fill in a small part of the total understanding of the shrimp-goby relationship. In particular my research will be focused on answering the following questions (which I shall proceed to explain how I will determine the answers):

  1. Are Hawaiian goby-shrimp pairs (the gobies which belong to a different genus than most other shrimp-gobies), similar in behaviors (daily rhythm cycles), population dynamics (density, individuals per hole etc.) to the other shrimp-goby pairs that have been studied in depth? (see baseline studies)
  2. Will changing the predation pressure on goby-shrimp pairs (by caging) have a pronounced effect on their population dynamics (density / sizes / etc) in the short term (3 weeks)? (see predation studies)

Hypothesis (null) to be Tested:

  • The density of Shrimp-Goby holes is not affected by predation.
  • The density of Psilogobius mainlandi is not affected by predation.
  • The density of Alpheus sp. shrimp is not affected by predation.