Egg Size Scales Negatively With System Size in a Periodic Fish Species.

ABSTRACT: Optimal egg size theory implies that female organisms balance between fecundity and individual offspring investment according to their environment. Past interspecific studies suggest that fishes in large marine systems generally produce smaller eggs than those in small freshwater systems. We tested whether intraspecific egg size variation reflected a similar pattern by comparing egg size among yellow perch (Perca flavescens) populations inhabiting a range of system sizes. In 2018, 2019, and 2023, we collected yellow perch egg samples from 12 locations in systems ranging in surface area from 37 to 5,390,492 ha. First, we found that egg diameter significantly increased with maternal total length in five of eight individually tested populations. After accounting for these maternal effe

SUBMITTER: Koenigbauer ST 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11486665 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature