Embiotoca jacksoni (Black Surfperch)
Credit: Ron DeCloux
about the species
The Black Surfperch is a marine reef fish with an unusual lifestyle. It bears live young, which the mother feeds via a uterus. Young fish are born as small adults that can feed on their own and become reproductive very early in their life. Thus, they remain close to their parents. This unique life trait makes this species particularly interesting because its dispersal is very limited compared to other marine fishes, which results in genetically structured populations and potential for local adaptation.
why species was selected
Due to their unusual lifestyle, Black Surfperch are good model systems to understand how genetic provinces are defined along the coast of California. Whole genome resequencing along the gradient of temperatures that are encountered along the California coast will provide a unique opportunity to study environmental and ecological drivers of genome evolution. This project will also allow us to characterize the genomic distinctiveness of local genetic populations of this species.
