Guest Speaker: Rebecca Bennett
“Gouldians, Zebras and noise – something unexpected”
Rebecca Bennett is a PhD candidate at the University of the Sunshine Coast, where she is combining a life-long love of birds with her undergraduate degree in environmental science and her work in environmental policy to understand how human activities affect bird behaviour. Her project, “Cognitive and behavioural responses to noise in two species of Australian Estrildid finch”, has investigated the effects of chronic noise exposure on two finches – the Gouldian and the Zebra. These species differ in their life histories and social behaviour in ways that influence how they respond to environmental stressors. The effects of “noise” on three dimensions of behaviour – risk taking, problem solving, and courtship – were explored through experiments conducted with captive, aviary-bred populations of each species. This talk will present the results of these experiments, and discuss the implications for how we make decisions about keeping and conserving these and other bird species.
Rebecca’s results will be of wide interest so come along to listen and learn, or connect via Zoom.
