http://www.vthrc.uq.edu.au/ecovis/StaffPostgrads/Kerstin.html

Vision and Visual Ecology of Pelagic Fish and Marine Turtles

I am interested in the visual capabilities of large open ocean inhabitants such as tuna and billfish, as well as sharks and sea turtles. Aims of the research are to establish if these animals have colour vision and how their eyes have adapted successfully to a range light intensities and temperatures, some of them coping with diving depths close to 1000m. In my group we use a range of techniques including anatomical investigations of the retina and the optics of the eye, microspectrophotometry, electrophysiology and mathematical modelling. The applied part of the research is undertaken in collaboration with the fisheries industry and related research organisations in Australia and the US. We aim to contribute background information about fish, shark and sea turtle visual sense to help solve problems affecting stock assessment and improve by-catch reduction.

Selected Publications:

KA Fritsches, R. Brill, E. Warrant (2005). Warm eyes provide superior vision at depth in swordfishes. Current Biology 15 (1):

KA Fritsches, L Litherland, N Thomas & J Shand (2003). Cone visual pigments and retinal mosaics in the striped marlin. Journal of Fish Biology 63: 1347-1351.

KA Fritsches, NJ Marshall & EJ Warrant (2003). Retinal specializations in the blue marlin; eyes designed for sensitivity to low light levels. Marine and Freshwater Research 54:333-341.

KA Fritsches & NJ Marshall. (2002). Independent and conjugate eye movements during optokinesis in teleost fish. Journal of Experimental Biology 205: 1241-1252.

KA Fritsches & NJ Marshall (1999). A new category of eye movements in a small fish. Current Biology 9(8): 272-273.

Professional Associations:

Australian Neuroscience Society

Australian Marine Science Association

International Neuroethology

Student Projects Available:

The effect of different lifestyles on the retinal topography of popular fisheries species in Wachapreague Bay

Student Level: Honours Start Year: 2006 Sem Available: 1

Research Collaborators:

COLLIN Shaun - Marine Neurobiology and Behaviour
HART Nathan - Ecology and evolution of visual systems
SIEBECK Ulrike - Colour communication and visual perception in reef fish
MARSHALL Justin - Colour vision, colour communication and visual ecology of coral reefs and other habitats
WARRANT, Eric J
BRILL, Richard W

Students:

KEAYS Robert - BSc(Hons) - A comparative study of optical sensitivity in teleosts: the role of a retinal tapetum in both shallow water and deep-sea species
MCPHERSON Kylie - BSc(Hons) - Retinal anatomy and optics in small tuna.
FERN Denby - BSc(Hons) - Optical Sensitivity of the brownbanded bamboo shark. Chiloscyllium panctatum
LITHERLAND Lenore - PhD - Sensory biology of sharks and rays
SMITH Kate - HON
HARAHUSH Blake - PhD - Visual development in elasmobranchs
PARKER Amira - PhD

Research Visitors:

Prof Eric Warrant, University of Lund, Sweden

Dr Rich Brill, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, USA