Experiment log: WA acclimation

It’s the week before the experiment so it’s officially acclimation week!

2024-07-15

• No mortalities!
• Ammonia check and water change for all tanks
• Moved tanks on lower rack that are really close to the light to the other side where there is no light. I’ll either need to add a strip light there OR move the other tanks to the floor under the rack lights so they are on the same circadian rhythm.
• Labelled crabs in T1-T3

2024-07-16

• No mortalities!
  • Although, Heidi found a piece of carapace but no crabs seemed to have died…?!
• Labelled crabs in T4-T8

2024-07-17

• 241 dead (it felt squishy like it had just molted, and Heidi did find that carapace piece yesterday)

2024-07-18

• Ammonia checks and water changes for all tanks
• Changed all filters
• No mortalities!

2024-07-19

• Skipped today

2024-07-20

• Crab 229 died
• Cleaned tanks and fed crabs

2024-07-21

• Water changes and ammonia conditioner for all tanks
• Changed all filters
• Added heart rate backpacks to designated heart rate crabs
• Created data sheets for tomorrow’s experiment
• Designed sampling scheme for the experiment
  • Sampling six crabs per treatment each day, but alternating either sampling two or one crab from tanks to keep overall sample size high for time-to-right
• Set up computer program for heart rate data collection

Going forward

1. Genotype WA crabs
2. Conduct WA experiment
3. Develop heart rate protocol