Heather A Leba
Department of Zoology,
University of Hawai`i
2538 McCarthy Mall,
Edmondson 152
Honolulu, HI 96822
leba@hawaii.edu

Research Interests:

Reproduction: everyone's doing it.
My main research interests lie in fish reproductive biology, behavior and development. Specifically, these interests extend to ovarian structure and development, including hormonal and environmental control, female mate choice and parental care, and larval development.

My Master's thesis focuses on three Hawaiian goatfish species, Mulloidichthys vanicolensis, M. flavolineatus, and Parapeneus porphyreus (Mullidae), relating age, growth, reproductive development and reproductive seasonality to the existing fishery for these species. For fisheries species, it is imperative to understand their biology and reproduction to ensure that the fishing practices are not deleteriously affecting potential recruitment and population numbers. No in-depth histological analyses of these species has ever been conducted, and this will be a main component of my project. I'll also be investigating size and age at maturity and comparing them to current catch size limits. I'd also like to determine the overall reproductive seasonality of these species and speculate how the lack of seasonal fishing closures may be affecting this process.

Other questions I'd like to address are: Are the catch sizes and bag limits biologically significant and relevant or do they impede local recruitment and drive these populations down? What are appropriate management strategies that would take into consideration all of these parameters and can these be effectively implemented here in Hawaii, or is it too late for these species?