Heather Austin’s Research…How Color of Shrimp changes with Increased

Depth in the Ocean

•Question: Does pigment (color of shrimp) change with depth?

•Hypothesis: Pigment does change with depth. Shrimp have more red pigment in the deeper waters.

Photos Courtesy of Heather Austin and Sara Matthews

What Heather Found•Pigment increases with depth

•…So in deeper waters, the shrimp have more red pigment compared to the surface waters

•Why?

~900 meters~500 meters

~150 meters

Photos Courtesy of Heather Austin and Sara Matthews

Percent Pigment

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Percent PigmentD

epth MOCNESS 1

MOCNESS 2

Photos and Graph Courtesy of Heather Austin and Sara Matthews