The effect of the rise of the Isthmus of Panama on body sizes and trophic structure of marine gastropods
Seth Finnegan, Professor
Integrative Biology
Open. Apprentices needed for the fall semester. Enter your application online beginning August 21st. The deadline to apply is Monday, August 31st, 4pm.
The formation of the Isthmus of Panama separated the Caribbean Sea from the Pacific Ocean, and the marine ecosystems on either side of the isthmus have diverged substantially over the last several million years as a result of this split. Compared to the strong coastal upwelling zones present in the tropical Eastern Pacific, the intensity of seasonal upwelling on the Caribbean side is almost nonexistent. This manifests as contrasting productivity regimes in the Caribbean and tropical Eastern Pacific, which has knock-on effects on ecology and community composition. The considerably lower levels of phytoplankton productivity in the Caribbean results in, less biomass and fewer suspension feeders and predators, as well as a shift in benthic habitats towards coral reefs and seagrass beds in the Caribbean relative to the tropical Eastern Pacific. The Panama Paleontology Project (PPP) aims to use both fossil and modern assemblages from Panama to test hypotheses about productivity and ecosystem structure using the formation of the Isthmus of Panama and its effects on marine ecosystems as a study system. This project is centered on a comparative analysis of living and fossil shell size and shape in marine gastropods (snails) from the Caribbean and Pacific sides of the Isthmus of Panama to understand how long how long-term declines in primary productivity associated with Isthmus closure affected body size distributions and the energy flow through different trophic groups (predators, grazers, etc.).
Role: The undergraduate researcher will assist with the imaging of fossil gastropod samples,
and the analysis of shell dimensions using the AutoMorph software. AutoMorph takes stacks of images taken at different focal planes to extract both two-dimensional variables (axis length, perimeter, area, etc.) as well as 3-dimensional shapes of the shells being imaged. Throughout this process, the researcher will learn about molluscan ecology and evolution. They will learn basic statistical and data visualization approached to examine trends through time, across environments, and between different clades and trophic groups.
Qualifications: No prior research experience is required, but interest and/or prior coursework in paleontology, geology, or marine biology will be helpful. Image acquisition workflow may be somewhat tedious and repetitive but will nonetheless require the researcher’s full care and attention; The researcher should ideally be motivated, responsible, and (most importantly) enthusiastic! Please mention the following in your application:
- Why you want research experience
- How many course credit hours you're taking this semester, and how much time you realistically have to devote to research
- Any research experience you have (which could include independent class projects)
- Any work experience you have (including food service, retail, etc)
- Your favorite class(es) you've taken and why
Day-to-day supervisor for this project: Siddharth Gavirneni
Hours: to be negotiated
Biological & Health Sciences