dc.contributor.author | Badcock-Parks, Broderick | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2022-08-22T13:37:55Z | |
dc.date.available | 2022-08-22T13:37:55Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2022-08-22 | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10222/81867 | |
dc.description.abstract | Food storing, a hippocampus-dependent spatial behaviour, fluctuates seasonally in black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus), who store more food in the fall months for later retrieval in the resource-scarce winter. Supporting this behavioural plasticity is hippocampal neural plasticity. However, previous studies on how the hippocampus changes seasonally are inconsistent; it appears captivity may contribute to this variability. Here, I examined seasonal patterns of hippocampal plasticity in wild, non-captive male and female black-capped chickadees (N=36 adults). While hippocampal plasticity in males was minimal, female chickadees captured in winter (December-January) had increased hippocampal neurogenesis (measured using doublecortin immunoreactivity) compared to females captured in March-April and August-September. While sex differences in brain and behaviour are observed in some avian and non-avian species, these data are the first evidence of sex differences in the hippocampus of black-capped chickadees, and suggest there may winter-specific physiological and social pressures borne only by females which require specialized neural infrastructure. | en_US |
dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
dc.subject | hippocampus | en_US |
dc.subject | neural plasticity | en_US |
dc.subject | neurogenesis | en_US |
dc.subject | sex differences | en_US |
dc.subject | black-capped chickadee | en_US |
dc.title | Natural photoperiodic regulation of hippocampal neural plasticity in wild male and female black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) | en_US |
dc.date.defence | 2022-08-12 | |
dc.contributor.department | Department of Psychology and Neuroscience | en_US |
dc.contributor.degree | Master of Science | en_US |
dc.contributor.external-examiner | n/a | en_US |
dc.contributor.graduate-coordinator | Dr. Tamara Franklin | en_US |
dc.contributor.thesis-reader | Dr. Marty Leonard | en_US |
dc.contributor.thesis-reader | Dr. Tamara Franklin | en_US |
dc.contributor.thesis-supervisor | Dr. Leslie Phillmore | en_US |
dc.contributor.ethics-approval | Received | en_US |
dc.contributor.manuscripts | Not Applicable | en_US |
dc.contributor.copyright-release | Not Applicable | en_US |