IRES Track I: Exploring the Ecophysiology of Energy Balance in Vienna, Austria

Austin College

Investigators

Abstract

This award aims to grow a globally engaged U.S. scientific workforce by providing an international research experience in Vienna, Austria to a diverse group of U.S. undergraduate students. Five students per year will conduct individual research projects on energy balance in vertebrates (including hibernating dormice and migratory birds), mentored by a dynamic group of international ecophysiology researchers at the Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences of the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna. Understanding how various vertebrate animals choose to allocate energy resources under different environmental conditions is important for predicting how those animals might respond to a changing climate. On their return to north Texas, students will present the results and broader implications of their research on these topics and their travel experience to the local community. Comparative ecophysiology provides a unique opportunity to investigate the strategies by which various vertebrates at different life stages cope with extreme energy demands under a potentially changing climate. Hibernators gain extensive body fat to fuel survival over months of aphagia, and have lifespans longer than predicted for their body size. Migratory birds expend immense amounts of energy to fuel continent-scale migrations, but also must have sufficient energy for costly breeding behaviors and courtship displays. Understanding the common strategies by which birds and mammals manage energy allocation in different seasons may provide insights into the ability of these organisms to deal with the likely perturbations of food availability due to climate change. IRES participant projects fall into 3 main categories: 1) effects of early-life caloric restriction (on hibernation and ageing in dormice, and on migratory behavior in birds); 2) cost/benefit decisions of arrival time and breeding behavior in migratory birds; 3) regulation of metabolic costs of courting behavior in birds. IRES students will participate in a semester-long half credit pre-departure course providing training in cultural competency, necessary technical skills, and project design in collaboration with their international research mentors. During their 7 weeks in Vienna, students will carry out their individual projects, present on their findings, and write up a project report that where appropriate may be submitted for publication. On their return to the US, students will present their research to peer, scientific, and general audiences in a variety of local, regional, and national venues. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.