The evolutionary ecology of visual communication in birds: proximate mechanism, signal function, and evolution

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My research explores the ecology and evolution of visual communication in animals, using bird plumage colouration as a model system. Avian plumage colouration serves many functions. Cryptic plumage colouration can provide camouflage for nesting females, whereas brilliant plumage colours can function as signals of health, condition, or genetic quality in male birds. Over the next five years, my research will investigate the proximate mechanisms controlling plumage colouration in wild birds, explore the consequences of variation in colour on survival and reproductive success, and document the influence of the perceptual environment on the evolution of different colours across multiple bird species. My students and I will address these research objectives through parallel studies of three colourful groups of birds: North American wood warblers, tree swallows, and Neotropical manakins.          Together with my students, I will use an integrative approach combining field studies, museum investigations, and laboratory analyses to explore the ecology and evolution of visual communication in these groups of birds. We will implement the use of innovative research tools and methodologies to investigate animal colouration with an unparalleled degree of rigor. The support requested from NSERC will fund the training of graduate and undergraduate students, user fees at biological stations, travel to our study sites, and the consumable supplies required for our molecular ecology analyses. My findings will enrich our understanding of fundamental principles in evolutionary ecology while enhancing our knowledge of the breeding biology of Canadian and tropical songbirds. Such data are crucial to ensuring the protection and maintenance of viable populations of breeding birds. My research program will emphasize the training of a large group of students and technicians in a broad array of research methodologies, providing them with technical expertise that will prepare them for scientific careers. NSERC support is essential to the execution and success of my research program.