[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Sex ratios and water
I was interested to read of Sam's experiment about pH and sex ratios.
Sam (or anyone else), did you try hatching the eggs in water of differing
pH and seeing what ratios you get? I think you said you hatched all eggs
in one type of water and then transferred the fry to different water. A
way to get some idea whether water conditions cause an actual shift in
gender or simply that certain conditions are better suited to one sex might
be to monitor the percentage of eggs that hatch and grow to adulthood. If
a large number of eggs don't hatch, or don't hatch into vigorous fish, it
may indicate the latter is true. On the other hand, if a consistent number
of eggs hatch under different conditions, but produce varying sex ratios,
it may indicate some gender shifting. Further, what about the possibility
that the water in which spawning takes place is a factor? That is, maybe
fertilization rates are higher for one sex under certain conditions. I would
be interested in any thoughts anyone has on these topics. Of course, all
this may be totally off-base, but it would be interesting to know that as
well.
Follow-Ups: