Understanding
Ageing Crickets
(NB:parts
of this WWDS account are in German)
Felix
Zajitschek - by Sarah Wood
Born in Germany, Felix
Zajitschek is in Australia as PhD student doing research
in the School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences
at the University of New South Wales.
He studied from 1996-2003 at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
(LMU), Munich doing exchange at the University of Tasmania
from 1999-2000. In 2003, Felix did a Diploma of Biology at
LMU where he wrote his thesis on 'The impact of different
temperature-niches on fire bellied toads in Romania'.
On the 12th of April 2006, Felix was working at UNSW
Smiths Lake field station in the North Coast of NSW. He
was conducting his experiment on field crickets and their
selection of mates. Their choice of mates genetically influences
evolutionary life history traits, such as senescence
(the wear and tear from ageing).
Felix works closely with his wife, Susie,
who is also doing a PhD. Her focus is on the effects of inbreeding
on mate choice and behavioral avoidance of inbreeding in Guppies.
They have the same supervisor, Dr
Rob Brooks from the University of NSW.
Although Felix says his work can be long and tiresome at times,
he enjoys working in the field especially at Smiths Lake.
Below, Felix has hand written an account of his Day in Science.
He describes the research he was doing on this day, and he
does so in his native language - German.
1. What was the high point of your day on the 12th
of April 2006.
2. Where does your day's activity fit into your job
and career path?
3.What interested you when you were at high-school? What steered
you into a career in science?
Felix and Susi Zajitschek.
 
Field Crickets that Felix is working on at Smiths Lake.
Smiths Lake Field Station
Preparations for his experiment at Smiths Lake Field
Station.
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