1st Edition

Biology of the Three-Spined Stickleback

    404 Pages 51 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    Highlighting the growing importance of the sticklebacks as a model species in emerging fields such as molecular genetics, genomics, and environmental toxicology, Biology of the Three-Spined Stickleback examines data from researchers who use studies of the stickleback to address a wide range of biological issues. This state-of-the-art volume is the first comprehensive review of the biological research on this important fish in more than a decade.

    The book presents current knowledge on the geographic and genetic variation of the ubiquitous three-spined stickleback and explores the possibility of any subdivision within currently recognized stickleback species. It provides a summary of important new molecular tools available, and how these tools can be used to study the genetic architecture and molecular basis of evolutionary change in different stickleback populations around the world. The book also lays out their physiology, historical factors, geographic distribution, and describes the features of their biology that seem to promote rapid speciation. It covers reproductive behavior in chronological order, and the mechanisms and selection pressures behind the activities that sticklebacks perform during the different phases of the breeding season.

    Full of cutting-edge data, the book discusses the umwelt of the three-spine stickleback, with particular reference to how that world interacts with and shapes intraspecific communication during the breeding season. It covers developments in stickleback reproductive physiology from 1991 onward and summarizes studies performed — mainly within the fields of behavioral ecology and physiology — on some of the less-studied stickleback species. The book touches on the biology, in particular the behavioral ecology, of the 15-spined stickleback. Emphasizing the importance of the sticklebacks to a variety of disciplines, this book presents information that is both extensive and authoritative.

    Phylogeny, Systematics, and Taxonomy of Sticklebacks, M.Y. Mattern
    General Introduction
    Spinachia Cuvier 1817
    Apeltes DeKay 1842
    Culaea Whitley 1950
    Pungitius Coste 1848
    Gasterosteus Linnaeus 1758
    Family-Level Relationships
    General Conclusions
    References
    Appendix: Synonymy
    The Molecular Genetics of Evolutionary Change in Sticklebacks, D.M. Kingsley and C.L. Peichel
    Introduction: The Growth of Genomic Resources for Three-Spined Sticklebacks
    Developing a Toolkit for Molecular Analysis
    Applications to Specific Traits
    Discussion
    Concluding Remarks
    Acknowledgments
    References
    Speciation in Sticklebacks, J.W. Boughman
    Introduction
    Setting the Stage
    The Basis of Reproductive Isolation
    Mechanisms of Speciation: Natural Selection and Reproductive Isolation
    The Genetics of Parallel Evolution and Speciation
    Persistence and Conservation of Species
    Acknowledgements
    References
    Antipredator Defences in Sticklebacks: Trade-Offs, Risk Sensitivity, and Behavioural Syndromes, F. Huntingford and S. Coyle
    Predators of Sticklebacks
    Antipredator Adaptations in Sticklebacks
    Effects of Local Predation Regimes
    Costs, Benefits, and Trade-Offs
    Individual Variability in Risk Taking
    Conclusions
    Acknowledgements
    References
    Reproductive Behaviour in the Three-Spined Stickleback, S. Östlund-Nilsson
    Introduction
    Territoriality
    Nest Building
    Paternal Care
    Courtship and Mate Choice
    References
    The Umwelt of the Three-Spined Stickleback, D.A. McLennan
    Introduction
    Vision
    Olfaction
    What Sensory Systems are Left to Study?
    Umwelt and Us
    References
    Reproductive Physiology of Sticklebacks, B. Borg
    Introduction
    Spermatogenesis and Spermatozoa
    Gonadal Hormones
    Secondary Sexual Characters
    Brain–Pituitary–Gonadal Axis
    Control of the Seasonal Reproductive Cycle
    References
    Hormonal Control of Reproductive Behaviour in the Stickleback, I. Mayer and M. Páll
    Introduction
    Reproductive Behaviour in the Stickleback
    Gonadal Steroids and Reproductive Behaviour
    Androgen–Behaviour Relationships over the Nesting Cycle
    Cost–Benefit Trade-Offs Associated with High Androgen Levels
    Prolactin and Behaviour
    Other Factors
    Behaviour and Other Stickleback Species
    Endocrine Disruption of Reproductive Behaviour
    Summary
    References
    Host–Parasite Interactions of the Three-Spined Stickleback, I. Barber
    Introduction
    Patterns of Infection in Three-Spined Sticklebacks
    Avoiding Infections: Behavioural and Immunological Resistance to Parasites
    Morphological and Physiological Effects of Infection
    Behavioural Effects of Infections
    Fitness Consequences of Infections in Natural Populations
    References
    The Use of the Stickleback as a Sentinel and Model Species in Ecotoxicology, I. Katsiadaki
    Introduction
    The Ideal Model and Sentinel Species?
    Environmental Sentinel
    Endocrine Disruption in the Environment
    Summary
    Acknowledgements
    References
    The Biology of Other Sticklebacks, S. Östlund-Nilsson and I. Mayer
    Introduction
    The 15-Spined Stickleback, Spinachia spinachia
    The Black-Spotted Stickleback, Gasterosteus wheatlandi
    The Nine-Spined Stickleback, Pungitius pungitius
    The Brook Stickleback, Culaea inconstans
    The Four-Spined Stickleback, Apeltes quadracus
    Evolution of Sticklebacks: Further Evidence of a Marine Ancestor
    References
    Index

    Biography

    Ostlund-Nilsson\, Sara; Mayer\, Ian; Huntingford\, Felicity Anne

    “… introduce(s) 11 contributed chapters that examine the dramatic structural and behavioral differences in naturally isolated stickleback populations in light of the latest genetic mapping studies. …”
    —  In Book News Inc., June 2007

    "Biology of the Three-Spined Stickleback includes a good selection of important topics and some well-conceived and well-written reviews."

    – Michael A. Bell, Ecology & Evolution, Stony Brook University, in The Quarterly Review of Biology, June 2008, Vol. 83, No. 2