Final Invert Tank Conclusions

By: Aaron and Claire

Intro: Background info

● Hands on display that grabbed people's attention to learn

● Test the relationships and territories of 3 different species of shrimp

● See if a symbiotic relationship could be made between snapping shrimp and gobies

● Create a diverse ecosystem with many different relationships and territories

Info on organisms ● Sexy shrimp and their

relationships with anemones and corals in the tank (Seona Choi)

● Snapping Shrimp and goby symbiotic relationship and territory (http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250)

● Peppermint shrimp and their relationship with other species of shrimp

Research Questions 1. Can multiple types of shrimp live together, will they fight, or will they become territorial?

2. Pistol shrimp and gobies have mutualistic relationships, will the other species of shrimp attack

these gobies? Will the shrimp take the gobies? What will the gobies do?

3. Will we need to add more hiding places for the shrimp?

4. If the shrimp become aggressive, how can we prevent it and how can we find a solution that will

help them to coexist?

5. how is a mutualistic relationship between two organisms of different species, in this case shrimp

and goby, “working together” to benefit from the relationship (McGinley, 2014)?

Hypothesis

1. The behavior of shrimp in symbiosis and the behavior of shrimp that are solitary

will be observed in this experiment. Shrimp with symbioses will behave differently

than the shrimp that are solitary.

2. The symbiotic relationships created by our selection of animals will be mutualistic

and beneficial to both parties involved in each relationship. For example, the goby

uses the pistol shrimp burrow for protection from predators, the goby acts as

"eyes" for the pistol shrimp (Smith, 2014).

Materials and Experiments Materials: acclimation tank, sump, protein skimmers, sock filters, live rock, live sand, sponges, activated carbon, heater, lifeguard, etc. mysis shrimp, seaweed, and tongs Experiments: PH kits, alkalinity kits, hydrometer, and refractometer. These will be used to make sure the tank is always a safe environment for our ecosystem, in order for our experiment to thrive.

Data collection Shrimp and organism behavior will be observed and

recorded on a data sheet, this will have a diagram of the

tank on the back in order to draw the location of

organisms: Do they hide, and if so, where? Do they swim?

Do they pair up? Do they stay solitary? Do they form their

mutual relationships? Do they stay in similar areas? Do

they fight over food? How do they behave during the night

vs. day? How do they react to different lighting? What are

their eating habits going to be? Daily draw diagrams of the

tank to measure migration, hiding places, etc.

Results: review questions 1. Can multiple types of shrimp live together, will they fight, or will they become territorial?

2. Pistol shrimp and gobies have mutualistic relationships, will the other species of shrimp attack

these gobies? Will the shrimp take the gobies? What will the gobies do?

3. Will we need to add more hiding places for the shrimp?

4. If the shrimp become aggressive, how can we prevent it and how can we find a solution that will

help them to coexist?

5. How is a mutualistic relationship between two organisms of different species, in this case

shrimp and goby, “working together” to benefit from the relationship (McGinley, 2014)?

amount of a certain species in that territory 63 days total = percent of time spent in that territory

63 days total of recorded observation before, during, and after schooltank lights were mostly on when observations were taken

How we collected our data

**pass around an example of a filled out data sheet

example:

Hiding under rocks

show video of snapping going under the rock

On Corals

show video of sexy on corals

In caves/burrows

show video of snapper coming out of the cave

Below and sifting sand

show video of the conch feeding

With other organisms

point out where the sexies were drawn on the observation sheet all on same corals

discuss the symbiotic relationships between different organisms

Feeding

point out which animals have to be fed vs. eating within the tank

conclusion: reflection on hypothesis

1. The behavior of shrimp in symbiosis and the behavior of shrimp that are solitary

will be observed in this experiment. Shrimp with symbioses will behave differently

than the shrimp that are solitary.

2. The symbiotic relationships created by our selection of animals will be mutualistic

and beneficial to both parties involved in each relationship. For example, the goby

uses the pistol shrimp burrow for protection from predators, the goby acts as

"eyes" for the pistol shrimp (Smith, 2014).

if we were to keep going...

challenges ● our project isn’t very specific so it was hard to

come up with a plan to collect data and actually make an experiment

● we couldn’t find one snapping shrimp for a while● we couldn't find the first goby for a while/we

didn’t have one● the snapping shrimp would mostly be hidden● the salinity dropped low for about a week

bibliography"A Strange Pairing: Gobies and Pistol Shrimp." Absolutely Fish RSS. N.p., 23 July 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2015. __http://absolutelyfish.com/a-strange-pairing/__

Behavioral Ecology (2007) 18 (1):53-61.doi: 10.1093/beheco/arl055First published online: September 29, 2006. __http://beheco.oxfordjournals.org/content/18/1/53.full__ Choi, Seona, ed. "Thor Amboinensis Squat Anemone Shrimp." Animal Diversity Web. N.p., 12 Oct. 2013. Web. 25 Jan. 2015. <http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Thor_amboinensis/>. "DamselCompFAQs." DamselCompFAQs. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014. __http://www.wetwebmedia.com/damselcompfaqs.htm__

Bibliography cont. Fatherree, James W. “Aquarium Fish: A Look at the Gobies.” Advanced Aquarist, Jan. 2011. Web. 22 July 2014. <http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2011/1/fish#section-6>.

Spring, Julian. A Quick Reference Guide. Miami: Ricordea, n.d. Print. Oceanographic Series."Symbiotic Shrimp." Blue Zoo Aquatics. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Oct. 2014. <__https://www.bluezooaquatics.com/resources.asp?show=4__>. Wolfenden, Dave, ed. "Special Relationships: Keeping Pistol Shrimp and Gobies." Practical Fish Keeping. N.p., 12 Sept. 2012. Web. 16 Jan. 2015. <http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250>.__http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250__

Wolfenden, Dave. “Special Relationships: Keeping Pistol Shrimps and Gobies.” Practical Fishkeeping, 12 Sept. 2012. Web. 22 July 2014. <http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5250>.