Does mate choice play a role in the fertilization ecology of free-spawners? Botanists have long recognised the consequences of differential compatibility between mates for breeding programs and agriculture. In important aquaculture species such as abalone and sea-urchins, similar variation in mate compatibility has been observed but current theory struggles to explain this variation and its consequences. I have identified a new explanation for this variation and will test this explanation using ....Does mate choice play a role in the fertilization ecology of free-spawners? Botanists have long recognised the consequences of differential compatibility between mates for breeding programs and agriculture. In important aquaculture species such as abalone and sea-urchins, similar variation in mate compatibility has been observed but current theory struggles to explain this variation and its consequences. I have identified a new explanation for this variation and will test this explanation using a marine invertebrate that is a model system for study around the world. A positive result offers promise of explaining how females 'select' mates in free-spawning species and explaining the consequence of this mate selection.Read moreRead less
Intersexual arms races - are individuals within marine meta-populations less able to interbreed than assumed? A meta-population structure is thought to describe the inter-connected nature of many populations of marine animals with dispersive larvae. However, new theory predicts some of these populations might be not very inter-connected at all, despite larval migration. In some circumstances, independent, co-evolutionary arms races between sexes might develop within local populations, resulting ....Intersexual arms races - are individuals within marine meta-populations less able to interbreed than assumed? A meta-population structure is thought to describe the inter-connected nature of many populations of marine animals with dispersive larvae. However, new theory predicts some of these populations might be not very inter-connected at all, despite larval migration. In some circumstances, independent, co-evolutionary arms races between sexes might develop within local populations, resulting in individuals becoming increasingly less able to interbreed freely. I will directly test for this, measuring how successfully broadcast spawners can cross-fertilise across populations. This will reveal the genetic structure of these populations and if these animals really do live in a meta-population.Read moreRead less