Through a Research Opportunity Award from the National Science Foundation, biology professor David Craig is studying the migration and dispersal biology of tree swallows.
Craig received $37,246 to collaborate with David Winkler at the ornithology lab at Cornell University. Together, they will use next-generation technology and eBird data to conduct their investigations.
Craig is conducting his fieldwork in New York through July 31, and he will continue to collaborate on the analysis of data and writing through May 2016. By working with Winkler’s team during his 2015-2016 sabbatical, Craig hopes to improve his own research on Caspian tern movements worldwide.
Caspian terns are among the world’s most naturally occurring cosmopolitan species, but distinct variations occur in their behavior and ecology in different environments. For example, some populations migrate while others are sedentary.
For this reason, Caspian terns may prove useful in helping scientists understand general principals of evolution and ecology in the distribution of species during periods of global climate change.
