Mating Behavior in the Australian zebra finch

Experience all that zebra finches have to offer.

Students working in iibbs have the opportunity to work with our captive breeding population of zebra finches.

Zebra finch model system

The zebra finch has become a model system in several biological fields, including behavioral and evolutionary ecology. Having been thoroughly studied both in the wild and in captivity, our population offers iibbs students the opportunity to explore questions with a level of experimental control that would be difficult to match in the field. Past and current students have explored questions concerning mate choice, pair bonds, visual perception, and sexual selection.

Current projects:

• Manipulating the paternity threat: mate guarding flexibility in the Australian zebra finch (Leah Wilson, master's thesis)
• Effect of ambient noise on pair bonds (Arja Deb, undergraduate research)
• Effect of mercury on female song preference (Ellie Sheridan, undergraduate research)