Life Sciences Commons^™

Impacts Of Oil Exposure During Early Life Development Stages In Sheepshead Minnows (Cyprinodon Variegatus) Under Different Environmental Factors, Danielle Simning

Master's Theses

The release of approximately 5 million barrels of crude oil into the northern Gulf of Mexico during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill jeopardized estuarine ecosystem health from Texas to Florida. These estuarine habitats, which serve as nurseries for many important fisheries are also prone to rapid fluctuations in environmental stressors such as oxygen concentration, and salinity. The consequence of combined exposure to crude oil and suboptimal environmental factors during early life stage development of fish is still largely unknown. The objective of this project was to investigate the impacts of exposure to crude oil in combination with varying environmental …

Combined Effects Of Dissolved Oxygen And Temperature On Aerobic Respiration And Respiratory Recovery Responses Of The Spioniform Polychaete, Streblospio Gynobranchiata, In Relation To Body Size, Alyssa Bennett

Master's Theses

Elevated surface temperatures exacerbate the threat of hypoxia within coastal ecosystems. These two primary stressors likely interact as they elicit opposing physiological responses from marine organisms. Metabolic depression is typically associated with hypoxia, while metabolic rates increase with temperature. Moreover, physiological effects of combined stressors may not be additive. In light of increasing pressures from hypoxia, elevated ocean temperatures, and other stressors within coastal regions, studies need to examine effects of multiple stressors on physiology of coastal organisms.

Mass-specific aerobic respiration (V_O2) was characterized as a proxy for metabolic cost of Streblospio gynobranchiata, at combined levels of …