Collaborative Research: Parental care and the integration of personality and plasticity at multiple levels of phenotypic variance

不稳定的特征，如行为，在组织的多个层面上表现出差异；在个人内部，个人之间，以及种群和物种之间。这种变异的性质影响了进化过程，并有助于解释有机体如何对快速的环境变化做出反应，以及为什么一些生物在新的栖息地茁壮成长，另一些生物萎缩。在这个项目中，家麻雀父母行为的差异将通过多次繁殖尝试进行测量，并将其分离为其组成部分。对后代需求的操纵将在两个可供选择的假设中进行测试，以解释为什么经常勤奋照顾后代的个体也更灵活。一种新的统计技术将被用来评估父母行为的等级差异模式。在自由生活受试者和圈养受试者中使用受控喂食器的额外实验将测试个体内护理差异的差异是否是影响平均护理水平的决定或对可用食物随机差异的适应性管理的副产品。最后，对操作后激素水平的测量，以及一个新的实验，其中两种激素将被操纵，将检验关于在多个水平上影响父母行为表型差异的潜在机制的不同假说。该项目将培养一名博士后学者，支持研究生研究项目，培养本科生获得生物学和统计学相结合的经验，并帮助支持几项倡议，为那些无法获得积极科学研究的人提供体验研究的新机会。

Labile traits like behavior exhibit variation at multiple levels of organization; within individuals, among individuals, and among populations and species. The nature of this variation influences evolutionary processes, and can help explain how organisms respond to rapid environmental changes and why some thrive in new habitats and others dwindle. In this project, variance in parental behavior of house sparrows will be measured across multiple breeding attempts and separated into its constituent components. Manipulations of offspring demand will test among two alternative hypotheses for why individuals that routinely assiduously care for offspring also are more flexible. A novel statistical technique will be used to assess hierarchical patterns of variance in parental behavior. Additional experiments using controlled feeders in both free-living and captive subjects will test if differences in within-individual variance in care are a byproduct of decisions affecting mean levels of care or adaptive management of random variance in available food. Finally, measurements of hormone levels in response to manipulations as well as a novel experiment in which two hormones will be manipulated will test between alternative hypotheses about the underlying mechanisms that influence phenotypic variance in parental behavior at multiple levels. The project will train a post-doctoral scholar, support graduate research projects, foster undergraduates to gain experience in blending biology and statistics, and help support several initiatives to provide new opportunities for experiencing research to those without access to active scientific studies.