A5079375127- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Bird parasitology and diseases
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Animal Nutrition and Physiology
- Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Turtle Biology and Conservation
- Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Physiological and biochemical adaptations
- Reproductive biology and impacts on aquatic species
- Plant and animal studies
- Reproductive Physiology in Livestock
- Marine animal studies overview
- Animal and Plant Science Education
- Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
- Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth
- melanin and skin pigmentation
- Circadian rhythm and melatonin
- Effects of Environmental Stressors on Livestock
Louisiana State University
2019-2025
Tufts University
2011-2022
Yale University
2017-2019
The newly described technique of extracting corticosterone (CORT) from bird feathers may serve as a less invasive, more integrated measure bird's stress response.Previous work indicated that elevated plasma CORT resulted in poorer quality during molt.We tested the hypothesis direct link exists between and feather concentrations.We experimentally increased concentrations using implants found corresponding rise could be detected grown implantation.Furthermore, levels two at same time were very...
Deliberately feeding wildlife is an increasingly popular tourism-related activity despite a limited understanding of long-term impacts on the species being fed. As result, tourist behaviours that may have adverse imperiled often been encouraged without necessary evaluation or oversight. Here, we report responses Northern Bahamian Rock Iguanas (Cyclura cychlura) to human-visitation pressure and associated food provisioning. We compared variety blood chemistry parameters iguanas subjected...
Abstract The physiological stress response results in release of glucocorticoid hormones such as corticosterone (CORT). Whereas short-term activation this helps animals cope with environmental stressors, chronic can result negative effects including metabolic dysregulation and reproductive failure. However, there is no consensus hormonal profile a chronically-stressed animal, suggesting researchers may need to look beyond hormone titers interpret the impacts stress. In study, we brought wild...
Hormone receptors are a necessary (although not sufficient) part of the process through which hormones like corticosterone create physiological responses. However, it is currently unknown to what extent receptor concentrations across different target tissues may be correlated within individual animals. In this study, we examined question using large dataset radioligand binding data for glucocorticoid (GRs) and mineralocorticoid (MRs) in 13 house sparrow (Passer domesticus) (n = 72). Our...
Abstract Avoidance of novel stimuli (neophobia) affects how wild animals interact with their environment and may partly determine whether persist in human‐altered landscapes. The neuroendocrine mediators neophobia are poorly understood, although past work demonstrated that experimentally reducing circulating corticosterone wild‐caught house sparrows ( Passer domesticus ) decreased toward objects placed near the food dish. In this experiment, we directly tested role one two types receptors,...
There are complex interactions between an organism's microbiome and its response to stressors, often referred as the 'gut-brain axis'; however, ecological relevance of this axis in wild animals remains poorly understood. Here, we used a chronic mild stress protocol induce wild-caught house sparrows (Passer domesticus), compared microbial communities among stressed animals, those recovering from stress, captive controls (unstressed) group not brought into captivity. We assessed changes...
Both baseline and stress-induced concentrations of corticosterone (CORT) vary seasonally in a predictable fashion many wild birds. Hypotheses about why these patterns exist include the "behavior hypothesis," which predicts that animals will down-regulate CORT when CORT-induced behaviors are too likely to cause reproductive failure; "preparative posits both be high at times year with higher incidence stressors. We tested predictions made by behavior predictive hypotheses sensitivity tissues...
Petroleum can disrupt endocrine function in humans and wildlife, interacts particularly complex ways with the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, responsible for release of stress hormones corticosterone cortisol (hereafter CORT). Ingested petroleum act an additive fashion other stressors to cause increased mortality, but it is not clear exactly why—does feedback mechanisms, hormone production, or both? This laboratory study aimed quantify effects ingested Gulf Mexico crude oil on...
Over the short-term and at physiological doses, acute increases in corticosterone (CORT) titres can enhance immune function. There are predictable seasonal patterns both circulating CORT function across many animal species, but whether receptor density tissues varies seasonally is currently unknown. Using radioligand binding assays, we examined changes concentrations of glucocorticoid receptors (GR) mineralocorticoid (MR) spleen skin wild-caught house sparrows Massachusetts during six...
Novel object trials are commonly used to assess aversion novelty (neophobia), and previous work has shown neophobia can be influenced by the social environment, but whether altered behaviour persists afterwards (social learning) is largely unknown in wild animals. We assessed house sparrow ( Passer domesticus ) novel responses before, during after being paired with a conspecific of either similar or different behavioural phenotype. During trials, animals housed more neophobic partner...
Neophobia (aversion to new objects, food, and environments) is a personality trait that affects the ability of wildlife adapt challenges opportunities. Despite ubiquity importance this trait, molecular mechanisms underlying repeatable individual differences in neophobia wild animals are poorly understood. We evaluated wild-caught house sparrows ( Passer domesticus ) for lab using novel object tests. then selected subset neophobic non-neophobic individuals (n = 3 each, all females) extracted...
Although there is growing evidence that estradiol modulates female perception of male sexual signals, relatively little research has focused on auditory processing. We used in vivo 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to examine the neuronal effects and conspecific song house sparrows (Passer domesticus). assessed brain glucose metabolism, a measure activity, females with empty implants, implants ~1 month after implant removal. Females were exposed or...