| Emily Bennett, a sophomore Biology major from Muscatine, Iowa, is interested in environmental biology, notably the effects that human activities have upon wildlife populations. In particular, she is interested in how urban noise may alter animal communication strategies. Previous studies with birds have revealed that selected species alter their vocalizations to compensate for environmental noise. Her study, Call Frequency Adjustments in Budgerigars as a Response to Increased Environmental Noise, is designed to examine the specific responses of budgies (Melopsittacus undulatus) to a variety of noise regimes that mimic the types of noise that might be encountered in natural environments. She has obtained some preliminary results that indicate a shift in contact call frequency to higher frequencies in the face of ambient noise and is continuing data collection in the fall of 2007. |