NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2021: The morphological drivers and effects of long-distance bird migration

这一行动资助了NSF 2021财年生物学博士后研究奖学金，扩大了生物学中代表性不足群体的参与。该研究金支持一项针对该研究员的研究和培训计划，该计划将增加生物学中代表性不足的群体的参与。长距离迁徙是自然界最壮观的行为之一，但对于进行这种迁徙的动物来说，代价是高昂的。动物迁徙的原因是众所周知的，但进行这种迁徙所需的形态变化(形式和功能)却不太为人所知。本研究旨在了解远距离迁徙对迁徙物种形态的影响，并将加深对迁徙起源的理解。这位研究员将在一组不同的鸟类中整合大量的遗传、形态和分布数据，以回答物种内和物种间的这些问题。为了在主办机构增加更广泛的参与，研究员将指导本科生，为博士后研究人员组织社区活动，并在当地K-12学校组织外展活动。使物种或种群易受迁徙行为影响的因素仍然知之甚少。以前关于鸟类迁徙的研究揭示了季节性和栖息地等外部因素作为迁徙驱动因素的重要性，但鸟类的内在属性，如它们的形态，也可能对迁徙生活方式的易感性至关重要，而且在很大程度上仍未被探索。该项目将汇编1300种亚种雀形目鸟类的形态数据，并将这些数据与系统发育和分布数据结合起来，以测试主要形态特征与季节性迁徙得失之间的关联。然后，这位研究员将研究四种鸟类的形态和迁徙行为的范围内的差异，这些鸟类既包含迁徙种群，也包含迁徙种群，以测试形态特征的地理差异是否与种群水平上的迁徙行为差异相对应。这项研究将促进我们对迁徙的影响和驱动因素的理解，迁徙是一种在生命之树上无处不在的行为。该项目将包括在一所主要为拉美裔服务的机构对本科生研究人员进行广泛的现场方法和尖端分子技术培训，以及指导本科生的研究项目。这位研究员将利用有关鸟类迁徙的课程和活动在K-12学校进行推广。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2021, Broadening Participation of Groups Under-represented in Biology. The Fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. Long-distance migration is one of the most spectacular behaviors in the natural world, but is costly for the animals that undertake it. The reasons why animals migrate are well known, but the changes in morphology (form and function) required to undertake that migration are less well known. This research aims to understand how long-distance migration affects the morphology of migratory species, and will further the understanding of the origins of migration. The Fellow will integrate large sets of genetic, morphological, and distributional data in a diverse group of birds to answer these questions both within and across species. To increase broader participation at the host institution the Fellow will mentor undergraduate students, organize community events for postdoctoral researchers, and organize outreach events at local K-12 schools.The factors that predispose species or populations to migratory behavior remain poorly understood. Previous research on avian migration has revealed the importance of extrinsic factors like seasonality and habitat as drivers of migration, but intrinsic attributes of birds such as their morphologies are also likely critical for predisposition to migratory lifestyles and remain largely unexplored. This project will compile morphological data from 1,300 species of suboscine passerine birds and combine these with phylogenetic and distribution data to test for associations between key morphological features and the gain and loss of seasonal migration. The Fellow will then investigate range-wide variation in morphology and migratory behavior in four species of birds that contain both migratory and resident populations to test whether geographical variation in morphological traits corresponds with differences in migratory behavior at the population level. This study will advance our understanding of the effects and drivers of migration, a behavior ubiquitous across the tree of life. This project will involve extensive training of undergraduate researchers at a predominantly Hispanic-serving institution in both field methods and cutting-edge molecular techniques, as well as mentoring undergraduate student research projects. The fellow will conduct outreach at K-12 schools using lessons and activities about bird migration.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.