Aloha everyone,
Several months ago I posted about my undergraduate research project (and asked for ideas for possible other projects), and have decided to carry on with the O. cyanea research as originally planned. I am getting ready to start the actual experiment, and would like some of your professional input and suggestions.
Please read my paper here: Google Drive: Sign-in
Some questions/specific things I am looking for help or advice on are:
1. Would the octopuses do okay in a bare bottom tank? Originally I was thinking of covering 3 sides of a cube tank with the desired background, and leaving an inch or two of sand in the bottom as well as some rocks. However, if the octopuses would not be uncomfortable in a bare-bottom tank, I could also find a way to put the background color underneath. My thinking is that articles I have read (about cuttlefish) indicate that background matching may be more influenced by what is underneath them rather than beside them. Also, I want the octopus to be comfortable so it acts as naturally as possible, but I also don't want him to hide all the time. Would a few medium size rocks they could use as a den be sufficient to keep them happy?
2. What do you think of the time frame for each background? In the paper I have each background for 2 weeks, but, partially due to time I am now thinking about shortening that to one week.
3. Finally, and the most perplexing problem I am facing at the moment: what would be a statistical way to analyze my data? The experiment is based off of behaviour and observations, but how can I measure differences in a scientific way?
If you know of any other papers that aren't in my works cited that could be useful, please let me know. Any other suggestions about how to refine this project are welcome!
Thanks!
Nick
Several months ago I posted about my undergraduate research project (and asked for ideas for possible other projects), and have decided to carry on with the O. cyanea research as originally planned. I am getting ready to start the actual experiment, and would like some of your professional input and suggestions.
Please read my paper here: Google Drive: Sign-in
Some questions/specific things I am looking for help or advice on are:
1. Would the octopuses do okay in a bare bottom tank? Originally I was thinking of covering 3 sides of a cube tank with the desired background, and leaving an inch or two of sand in the bottom as well as some rocks. However, if the octopuses would not be uncomfortable in a bare-bottom tank, I could also find a way to put the background color underneath. My thinking is that articles I have read (about cuttlefish) indicate that background matching may be more influenced by what is underneath them rather than beside them. Also, I want the octopus to be comfortable so it acts as naturally as possible, but I also don't want him to hide all the time. Would a few medium size rocks they could use as a den be sufficient to keep them happy?
2. What do you think of the time frame for each background? In the paper I have each background for 2 weeks, but, partially due to time I am now thinking about shortening that to one week.
3. Finally, and the most perplexing problem I am facing at the moment: what would be a statistical way to analyze my data? The experiment is based off of behaviour and observations, but how can I measure differences in a scientific way?
If you know of any other papers that aren't in my works cited that could be useful, please let me know. Any other suggestions about how to refine this project are welcome!
Thanks!
Nick