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Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
Department
Biology
Additional Departmental Affiliation
Mathematics
Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
Scaling is defined as the changes related to body size an animal undergoes during its life history. This change in body size can have implications for habitat use, prey consumed, and predatory threats, among others. The goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara, undergoes one of the greatest amounts of scaling of any animal known, growing from 3mm at hatching to 2.3 m as adults. This tremendous change has implications for their development and niche as a top-level predator in their habitats. However, the consequences of their drastic change in body size for feeding performance have never been quantified. Here, a juvenile goliath was recorded using high-speed video (500 frames per second) in the lab and sequences were compared to videos collected on adults feeding in their natural habitat in the wild.
Advisor(s) or Committee Chair
Dr. Steve Huskey
Disciplines
Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Recommended Citation
Riggs, Michelle, "Scaling of Feesing Behavior and Performance in the Goliath Grouper, Epinephelus itajara" (2009). Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects. Paper 270.
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/stu_hon_theses/270