Shelby is a second year PhD student from Animal Biology, working in Mark Hauber’s lab. Her research focuses on the perceptual and neural processing of functional reference calling in yellow warblers, and the effects of experience on these mechanisms.
What have you been working on this past week?
I’ve been mainly collecting and reading papers for a manuscript I’m writing about recognition in yellow warblers. I’ve also been working on the research statement for my NSF GRFP (wish me luck!). Mikus, a post-doc from my lab, has been teaching me how to run assays for corticosterone on the blood samples I took from yellow warblers last summer. Through this I hope to see how the playbacks I presented affected the birds’ stress levels. I also have behavioral work I’ve been analyzing from last field season, and I’m finding some really cool results! My week would not be complete without mentioning the TA work I do, teaching multiple sections and answering questions in class and office hours. I like teaching and getting students interested in science 😃.
It’s also worth mentioning that if this question was asked in Spring, I’d have a very different answer. Spring is when most ornithologists conduct their field season, so I’d be out in the marshes presenting playbacks to warblers, mist netting them and taking measurements and blood. I like the dichotomy of fall vs spring work, it helps to shake things up!
What are your hobbies?
I’m really into wildlife photography, especially of birds (check out my winning entry on the second floor of Morrill😉). I also have a space at home where I work on my watercolor. I’m still kind of new at it, but it’s a lot of fun trying to figure out how it all works! I also play video games when I have chunks of free time. If anyone plays on Steam hit me up (I’m Bird Socks – my pic is an ostrich)
Do you have any pets?
I have cockatiel and 5 canaries. The cockatiel is a new addition to the family. He’s a white-faced cinnamon and he’s super sweet! The canaries I’ve had for over a year now. Two of them came from the lab I used to work in, one was from a breeder and 2 were hatched this spring.
Snowball, the white-faced cinnamon cockatiel.
Are you a member of other student organizations?
I’m actually the president of an improvisational comedy club I started on campus, called Subatomic Pigeon Improv. We’re all about teaching and practicing improv, which is why we don’t have auditions. If you’re interested, come see us in Lincoln Hall 1090 on Mondays at 7pm, or join the UofI Connections page!
Do you like to work anywhere besides your office? Where and why?
It’s funny but I’m hardly ever in my office, because I prefer to work at home when possible. I like being at my home desktop and reading/writing at my pace, I find it very relaxing and easy to get in the zone.
A view of your week:
Yellow warbler collected in Iroquios, IL
Alongside lab members, learning how to extract corticosterone from plasma samples for future analysis.
