Aurelia Wolf

Master Student in the group of Prof. Walter Salzburger

Current Research

The mechanosensory lateral line system is found in all fish and as well as some other aquatic vertebrates. It detects changes in water flow and pressure, contributing information for many behavioural decisions, such as predator/prey detection, intraspecific communication, schooling, object discrimination and rheotaxis.

Studying the morphological diversity of the lateral line system provides valuable insights into how fish perceive and navigate their aquatic environments, aiding in our understanding of sensory adaptation and ecological interactions. Cichlids serve as an excellent study organism for this research due to their remarkable morphological and behavioral diversity, rapid speciation rates, and the diverse habitats they inhabit. Investigating the morphological variation of lateral line system in cichlids offers a unique opportunity to explore the evolutionary processes driving sensory adaptation and ecological diversification.

In this project, my focus is on characterizing the diversity of the lateral line system in Lake Tanganyika cichlids, both across species and within species, to explore the drivers behind the morphological range observed. With this I aim to better understand the interplay between morphology, ecology and evolutionary history in Lake Tanganyika cichlids.

Curriculum Vitae

2023 -	Master Student at the Zoological Institute, University of Basel
2019 - 2022	B.Sc. in Biology, Major in Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Basel