Deakin University
Browse

File(s) under permanent embargo

Geographic variation in allometry in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

journal contribution
posted on 2011-12-01, 00:00 authored by C Egset, G Bolstad, G Rosenqvist, John EndlerJohn Endler, C Pélabon
Variation in static allometry, the power relationship between character size and body size among individuals at similar developmental stages, remains poorly understood. We tested whether predation or other ecological factors could affect static allometry by comparing the allometry between the caudal fin length and the body length in adult male guppies (Poecilia reticulata) among populations from different geographical areas, exposed to different predation pressures. Neither the allometric slopes nor the allometric elevations (intercept at constant slope) changed with predation pressure. However, populations from the Northern Range in Trinidad showed allometry with similar slopes but lower intercepts than populations from the Caroni and the Oropouche drainages. Because most of these populations are exposed to predation by the prawn Macrobrachium crenulatum, we speculated that the specific selection pressures exerted by this predator generated this change in relative caudal fin size, although effects of other environmental factors could not be ruled out. This study further suggests that the allometric elevation is more variable than the allometric slope.

History

Journal

Journal of evolutionary biology

Volume

24

Issue

12

Pagination

2631 - 2638

Publisher

Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Location

Oxford, U. K.

ISSN

1010-061X

eISSN

1420-9101

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2011, The Authors