Copepods have developed two distinct behavioral strategies that have different costs and benefits when it comes to feeding, mating and avoiding predators. A new PhD thesis quantifies these trade-offs.
In the ocean, the millimeter sized copepods have a major role in the marine food web: they are the most important ´grazers´ of the oceans phytoplankton and are the main food source for most fish, and even for whales. Copepods comprise thousands of species and are among the most abundant and diverse life forms on Earth. Despite their diversity copepods have developed two distinct behavioral strategies that have consequences for their trophic interactions. They either move actively through the water or they remain passive most of the time waiting from prey to pass by. These strategies have different costs and benefits when it comes to feeding efficiency, the risk being detected by a predator or encountering mating partners and this is what Hans van Someren Gréve quantified in his PhD thesis. The results of his work contribute to the development of novel marine ecosystem models to improve our understanding and the predictability of marine food web dynamics.
About the defence
Hans van Someren Gréve defended his thesis "Zooplankton Motile Behavior: Traits and trade-offs in planktonic copepods" at DTU on Friday 23 June 2017.
Supervisors
Principal supervisor: Professor Thomas Kiørboe, DTU Aqua
Co supervisor: Rodrigo Almeda, DTU Aqua
Examiners
Professor Brian R. MacKenzie, DTU Aqua
Professor Øyvind Fiksen, University of Bergen, Norway
Senior Researcher Maria Grazia Mazzocchi, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Italy
Chairperson
Senior Researcher Margit Eero, DTU Aqua