Collaborative Research: Adaptive plasticity, timing, and population divergence in a songbird species

这项研究询问动物如何知道是否以及何时迁徙，何时繁殖。焦点动物是一种鸣禽，在这种动物中，不同繁殖范围的种群在一起过冬，但是否迁徙却有所不同。当春天到来时，非迁徙者开始繁殖，而非迁徙者尽管生活在相同的环境中，却推迟了繁殖。对相同环境下不同反应机制的研究有助于解释动物如何监测环境并根据自身需要调整生理机能。黑眼睛的junco是一种鸣禽，是解决这些问题的理想模型。该项目将通过激素“挑战”和药理学操作来研究激素系统的可塑性。它还将探索来自最近分化的种群（加利福尼亚）和较长分化的种群（弗吉尼亚）的常住juncos和迁徙juncos之间基因表达的差异，这些juncos一起过冬，但在不同的时间在不同的地方繁殖。预测是，移民在应对挑战方面将与居民不同，而最近分化的人口将比更早分化的人口差异更小。另一个预测是，在一个共同的花园中，基因表达在分化时间较长的种群与新近分化的种群之间会有所不同。更广泛的影响这项研究将加深对为什么以及如何一些动物能够在不断变化的环境中茁壮成长，而另一些动物的活动范围缩小，一些物种消失的理解。这项研究将为培养研究生和本科生提供许多机会，所获得的知识将广泛传播。该项目将推广一部以研究物种为主角的纪录片，供高中和公共场所供成年学习者使用。数据管理。支持已发表论文结果的数据将在Genbank和/或Dryad上提供。本研究产生的所有数据将存档在印第安纳大学图书馆维护的在线存储库中（https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/handle/2022/7911）。

This research asks how animals know whether and when to migrate and when to breed. The focal animal is a songbird in which populations with separate breeding ranges winter together but differ in whether or not they migrate. When spring arrives the non-migrants begin to breed, while the non-migrants delay breeding despite living in the same environment. Research on the mechanisms that account for different responses to identical environments could help to explain how animals monitor the environment and adjust their physiology to their needs. The dark-eyed junco is a songbird and an ideal model to address these questions. This project will investigate plasticity in hormone systems using hormonal "challenges" and pharmacological manipulations. It will also explore differences in gene expression between resident and migratory juncos from recently diverged populations (California) and longer diverged populations (in Virginia) that over-winter together but breed in different places at different times. The prediction is that migrants will differ from residents in their response to challenges and that recently diverged populations will differ less than populations that diverged longer ago. Another prediction is that gene expression in a common garden will differ between longer diverged populations as compared with recently diverged populations. Broader impacts The research will enhance understanding of why and how some animals are able to thrive in changing environments, while other animals' ranges retreat, and some species are lost. This research will provide numerous opportunities to train graduate and undergraduate students, and knowledge gained will be disseminated broadly. The project will enable promotion of a documentary film starring the study species and designed for use in high schools and public venues for adult learners. Data Management.Data supporting results in published papers will be made available on Genbank and/or Dryad. All data generated from this research will be archived in an online repository maintained by the Indiana University Library (https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/handle/2022/7911).