Research Projects

The grant proposal aims to understand the neural basis of avian migration using Palearctic-Indian migratory buntings (Emberiza sp). These birds undergo drastic changes in behavior and physiology during their journeys between breeding and wintering grounds. The research will involve laboratory-based studies, where birds are photoinduced into vernal migratory states, while controls remain at winter non-migratory states. Behavioral and physiological assays will establish a seasonal state, and standard staining techniques will study the morphological characteristics of neuronal cells in different brain areas. Gene and protein assays will identify core regulatory molecules and decipher differences between seasonal life history states in a migratory songbird that overwinters in India. This research will address gaps in our current understanding of the neural basis of different seasonal states and the ethology of avian migrants, as well as offer new entry points to understand seasonal phenomena and the development of sleep disorders in vertebrates.