Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/B000214/1
Instrumentation for measuring environmental conditions and parental state in birds
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor P Monaghan, University of Glasgow, Environmental and Evolutionary Biology
- Co-Investigator:
- Dr RG Nager, University of Glasgow, College of Medical, Veterinary, Life Sci
- Grant held at:
- University of Glasgow, Environmental and Evolutionary Biology
- Science Area:
- Terrestrial
- Overall Classification:
- Terrestrial
- ENRIs:
- Global Change
- Environmental Risks and Hazards
- Biodiversity
- Science Topics:
- Environmental Physiology
- Behavioural Ecology
- Abstract:
- Successful incubation in birds involves regulation of the nest environment within optimal limits for embryonic development. Deviations from these conditions can have costs to the offspring. For the parents this is an energetically demanding process and to achieve these conditions the birds need to balance their own energy requirements for maintenance and thermoregulation against energy expenditure for incubation. A number of factors including environmental conditions, condition of the parent and nest structure and content can influence the parent's energy balance. We, however, have still a poor understanding if and how parents can compensate for such effects and maintain optimal incubation conditions for their offspring. If the parents cannot fully compensate there will also be some cost be paid by the embryo. Again, there is very little information on responses of embryos to variation in incubation conditions. This lack of information is mainly due to the absence of suitable instrumentation to record such variables repeatably on the same individuals over long periods of time and without major disturbance to the bird. We propose here to develop an instrumentation for use in the wild to enable us to combine studies of parental and embryo energy metabolism (measured as heart rate) with simultaneous measurements of temperature, humidity and bird identity within the same egg-based unit. In a short field study we will test the device by looking at the effects of clutch size, embryo age and nest construction on parental incubation effort and energy metabolism of embryos in the common eider. We will also validating the heart rate measurement as an index for energy metabolism by using indirect calorimetry as oxygen consumption.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/B000214/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Capital Equipment Pre FEC
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Capital Equipment
This grant award has a total value of £34,200
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| Total - T&S | Total - Other Costs | Total - Equipment |
|---|---|---|
| £2,632 | £28,024 | £3,544 |
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