Collaborative Research: Foraging Efficiency, Dominance, and Survivorship

在这个合作研究项目中，一位行为生态学家(K.A.Sullivan)和一位生理生态学家(W.W.Weather)研究了一种小型雀形目鸟类(Junco Phaenotus)的觅食效率、社会优势和生存之间的关系。这项研究的重点是终止成年看护后的两周内的幼鸟。在此期间，青少年死亡率很高(42%)，体重是生存的重要预测因素。密集选择期提供了一个机会，以确定觅食效率和/或社会优势是否也会影响生存，从而影响适应能力，正如当前理论所预测的那样。这项研究将对不同的主题提供见解，如幼虫觅食效率如何影响父母照看的时间长短，社会优势的能量成本和收益，微生境选择对日常能量消耗的影响，以及幼虫存活对种群的调节。

In this collaborative research project, a behavioral ecologist (K. A. Sullivan) and a physiological ecologist (W. W. Weathers) examine the relationship between foraging efficiency, social dominance, and survivorship in a small passerine bird, the yellow-eyed junco (Junco phaenotus). The study focuses on juvenile birds during the two-week period following the termination of adult care. During this period, juvenile mortality is high (42%) and body mass is a significant predictor of survival. The period of intense selection provides an opportunity to determine whether foraging efficiency and/or social dominance also affect survivorship, and hence fitness, as predicted by current theory. The study will provide insights concerning such diverse topics as how juvenile foraging efficiency affects the length of parental care, the energy costs and benefits of social dominance, the effect of microhabitat selection on daily energy expenditure, and population regulation by juvenile survivorship.