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Stickleback Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) |
| How big are threespine sticklebacks? | |||
As far as I know, these are the smallest and largest threespine stickleback populations in the world:
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| What do sticklebacks eat? | |||
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Artemia (brine shrimp) In the mornings, all fish get fed Artemia nauplii (brine shrimp that have been grown for about 24 hours) that have been enriched with the alga Spirulina. Freshly hatched Artemia nauplii contain energy on the order of 4kcal/g. This energy-rich source of food helps our juveniles grow. Artemia also contain carotenoids - a necessary dietary component in order for the sticklebacks to express their red nuptial coloration. Because the nauplii resemble some aquatic invertebrates that sticklebacks eat in the wild, feeding this live prey allows the sticklebacks to exhibit natural behaviors associated with hunting. Mysis Once our sticklebacks have gotten large enough, we also feed them frozen crustaceans from the order Mysida in the afternoons. Mysis have a high protein content that sticklebacks can convert towards growth and reproduction. The brand we buy has also been enriched with essential vitamins and fatty acids. - A.B. | |||
| Do you eat sticklebacks? | |||
| Sticklebacks are eaten (bones and all) in certain districts of Japan. They can be barbecued with salt; typically they are boiled with soy sauce, sugar, mirin wine, ginger, etc. Sticklebacks are a good source of calcium. - J.K. | |||
| How long do sticklebacks live? | |||
| Sticklebacks usually live for 1-2 years in the wild (Baker 1994). Some populations live longer (3-4 years). If we keep fish in the lab under a favorable condition, we can keep them alive and healthy up to three years or more. Threespine sticklebacks that lived for 8 years in the wild have been reported from a Canadian lake (Reimchen 1992). - J.K. | |||
| How do you catch sticklebacks? | |||
| Very carefully (with nets and traps: A dirty business, Conner Creek). | |||
| Are sticklebacks related to any fishes I've heard of? | |||
| Yes. Sticklebacks are in fact very closely related to seahorses and other pipefish (they're all in the taxonomic Order gasterosteiformes). Qualitatively speaking, among the better-known "fish model organisms", sticklebacks are fairly closely-related to cichlids, moderately related to the pufferfishes (Fugu, Takifugu, Tetraodon) and even less closely related to the medaka or platyfish. They're very distantly related to zebrafish and salmonids (salmon and trout). - J.R. | |||
Page Last Updated: 26 September 2006
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