BACKGROUND
It may seem obvious that a bird’s nest plays an important role in reproduction. For example, the eggs or young in a nest that is exposed to predators, in a nest that gets too wet or too cold or is too loosely attached to a branch are unlikely to survive. How does a bird ‘know’ where to build its nest, what materials to use and what form it should take? For many, the answer is that bird nests are the product of “instinct”. By using zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata, Healy (St Andrews) and Meddle (Edinburgh) have recently overturned this long-standing belief with data that show that individual birds vary in the nests they build, depending on the environment they experience. Furthermore, the birds’ experience with nest materials of different physical structure influences subsequent material choice, the way in which builders handle nest material changes depending on the nest box into which they must manoeuvre the material and birds will choose materials based on the success of a previous reproductive attempt. Blue tits building in St Andrews plus zebra finches building in the lab will enable the student to couple observational field data with experimental manipulations of the birds’ behaviour in the laboratory, to determine the responses birds make to their environment: do they build different nests in warmer temperatures? if so, do these nests affect the builder’s reproductive success? There may be opportunities for overseas travel e.g. laboratory manipulations of temperature at Deakin, Victoria, Australia in collaboration with Prof Kate Buchanan, where the role of early-life experience on subsequent building behaviour may also be explored, or to the Kalahari, South Africa to examine building by family groups of white-browed sparrow weavers.
Perhaps remarkably nest building is still a relatively undescribed behaviour. The observational, experimental and field behavioural work may be supplemented by neural and physiological analyses to explore the mechanistic basis of building.
This project would offer the successful candidate a wide range of training opportunities including UK field work, overseas lab/field work, experimental design, neurobiology, and statistical analysis of a range of types of data. There will be multiple opportunities to present data to Healy’s lab group, within the School, and at the Roslin Institute, and at both national (e.g. ASAB) and international conferences. All of Healy and Meddle’s students are encouraged to publish their data during their PhD and to take part in presenting their data to non-academic audiences.
Informal enquiries very welcome. Contact: Sue Healy ([Email Address Removed]), http://cognitioninthewild.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk
HOW TO APPLY
Application instructions can be found on the EASTBIO website- http://www.eastscotbiodtp.ac.uk/how-apply-0
1) Download and complete the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion survey.
2) Download and complete the EASTBIO Application Form.
3) Submit an application to St Andrews University through the Online Application Portal
Your online application must include the following documents:
- Completed EASTBIO application form
- 2 References (to be completed on the EASTBIO Reference Form, also found on the EASTBIO website)
- Academic Qualifications
- English Language Qualification (if applicable)
Unfortunately due to workload constraints, we cannot consider incomplete applications. Please make sure your application is complete by the 16th December 2021.
CONTACT
Queries on the project can be directed to the project supervisor.
Queries on the application process can be directed to Jess Fitzgerald at [Email Address Removed]
Please refer to UKRI website and Annex B of the UKRI Training Grant Terms and Conditions
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