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Advisor: Janis Dickinson Start Date: Fall 2006 |
Research summary
In cooperatively breeding bird species, some or all breeding pairs have one or more "helpers-at-the-nest," auxiliary individuals who aid the pair in raising the young. These helpers are often offspring of the breeding pair, but sometimes are more closely related to one breeder than the other. I study the complex interactions between members of these cooperatively breeding groups; specifically, I am interested in how having a helper at the nest alters the dynamics of sexual conflict between group members in facultative cooperative breeders. Because these interactions can be so complex, I use a mathematical modeling approach to generate predictions about optimal behavioral strategies. I am currently testing some of the predictions of my model, as well as some of the underlying assumptions, using my advisor Janis Dickinson's banded population of western bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) at Hastings Natural History Reservation in Carmel Valley, CA.