My research interests are in two major areas: effects of aging on behavior and hippocampal anatomy, and language dialect analysis in songbirds. The increased lifespan of humans causes a concomitant increase in age-related disorders. Therefore, developing animal models for age-related declines in neuroanatomy and learning are key to developing new diagnostic tests and treatments for these progressive disorders. I am using homing pigeons, a model species that is
similar to humans in the way it learns about the environment (using 3D visual cues) and in hippocampal neuroanatomy. I am investigating the neural bases of spatial working memory declines seen in older birds as a model for developing new tools to diagnose at risk populations of humans. I also am interested in how the seaside sparrow, an Atlantic saltmarsh songbird, develops song dialects. This species is very sensitive to environmental disruption, which makes them a good indicator species for wetland degradation.
