Spatiotemporal variation in sexual dynamics and life history of Gobiusculus flavescens: is mid-Norway a different story?

While we are starting to understand between-year variation in sexual selection, the interplay between geographical and within-year variation and its drivers have been very little explored. I will present a project for which pilot work has been conducted but where full-scale implementation is currently pending funding. The project focusses on spatiotemporal dynamics of sexual selection, life histories and parental care, using the two-spotted goby Gobiusculus flavescens as a model system, and a combination of field studies, lab experiments and mathematical modelling. The species occurs along the Norwegian (and W Swedish) coastline, up to Vesterålen in N Norway, and from sheltered to exposed locations. Thus, populations are subject to highly variable climatic and ecological conditions. Spatiotemporal variation in such conditions is predicted to affect the length of the breeding season, reproductive rate, costs of care, sexspecific mortality, sex ratios, and ultimately life histories and sexual selection. Comparison of work in a W Swedish population with pilot work in Mid-Norway suggest that sexual dynamics and life histories can be dramatically different. The aim is to analyse this model system along a gradient from W Sweden to N Norway, focusing on climate effects on spatiotemporal variation in parental care and sexual selection.