Flocking Behavior in Wild Birds: The Role of Seasons, Hormones, and the Brain
The roles of the hormones vasopressin and oxytocin in the regulation of social behavior have garnered considerable interest within the neuroscience community. These compounds modulate a variety of affiliative behaviors, including mother-offspring interactions and the formation of social bonds. Although the influence of oxytocin and vasopressin on social bonding has been firmly established, little is known about their relationship to social behaviors aside from bonding. Is group cohesion established solely through social bonding? In gregarious species characterized by the formation of large aggregations, maintenance of the group by close social bonds alone is unlikely. This research will investigate the relationship between hormones and variations in seasonal flocking behavior in the wild White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys), a conspicuous and abundant North American songbird.
Training objectives include learning: (1) to locate, capture, and handle wild birds and (2) how to integrate techniques employed in neuroscience and field biology. By examining the physiological processes underlying group formation within the environments experienced by free-living animals, this research stands to reveal a more comprehensive view of social behavior than currently exists. This research will also augment our understanding of winter sociality (group-living that is limited to the winter, non-breeding months) and facilitate comparisons of captive and free-living animals. Broader impacts of this award include: (1) research opportunities for undergraduates, (2) delivery of public lectures to local non-scientist groups, particularly those dedicated to persons with autoimmune disease; and (3) dissemination of research findings to those with learning and visual disabilities using audio files.
