Ronita Dua, “Behavioral Responses of Daphnia Magna to Olfactory Cues”
Mentor: Rudi Stickler, Biological Sciences
Ecological research is vastly impacted by the decisions organisms make in response to variegated stimuli. Chemical cues have significant effects on most aquatic animals and influence behaviors consequential for their survival. Although many studies have examined olfactory responses of plankton, only a few factor in food quality and the presence of predators around. This study focuses on the behavioral response of water fleas to olfactory cues from predation, algal preference and other factors influencing food quality in an attempt to examine ecosystem functioning. These experiments were conducted with Daphnia magna who are a key species in many lentic environments, being an important primary consumer and prey for planktivorous fish. The detectability and responses of daphnia to the presented stimuli help better understand olfaction in freshwater water fleas. The fluid environment with the suspended olfactory stimuli was generated using a four-arm olfactometer. The flow of water from the corners of the olfactometer was used to create four contiguous stimulus zones that allowed the water fleas to respond to stimuli in them. The four fields were used to test 3 stimuli with a control. The types of algae used were also altered to establish preferences. This was gauged by how much they of a behavior they triggered in the animal. The algae were grown in the lab from various cultures and examined for contamination prior to experimentation. Scenedesmus, Selenastrum and Chlorella were tested for preference. Due to the central role daphnia magna play in lake pelagic ecosystems, the knowledge obtained from this project will merit experimenters studying a variety of aquatic organisms.
Hello Everyone! My name is Ronita and I’m an international student studying biology on the pre-med track here at UWM. I have been working with my mentor Dr.Rudi Strickler on examining locomotion and olfaction in Daphnia Magna since last September. Although my project was initially just about olfaction, by performing my experiments I was able to pick on the vital interconnection between olfaction and locomotion and transform my path accordingly. I have had a wonderful experience working with Dr.Strickler and have learned so much over the past few months. Not only did my research add substantially to my skill set it also made me realize how passionate I am about the workings of life underwater! Feel free to comment your questions (if any) below and I will answer them to the best of my ability.
Thank you so much for watching my presentation and I hope you enjoy it!
Wow, what an interesting project. I didn’t expect that from the title, but your presentation really drew me in. I learned so much about Daphnia! One thing I started wondering about during your presentation was about how the propulsive behaviors you talk about are different for Daphnia in the context of groups. What would the flows look like if you had multiple sea fleas together instead of just one at the center of the project?