What we do
We are seeking to understand mechanisms of behavior and how they evolve: How do life history trade-offs shape the evolution of hormonal traits, particularly aggression? How do social challenges influence behavior and physiology? What about other environmental challenges and opportunities – do they activate conserved neural, hormonal, and genomics mechanisms? How do these processes differ between males and females? And why?
In the Rosvall lab, we approach these questions by combining conceptual and analytical tools from behavioral ecology, neuroendocrinology, evolutionary biology, physiology, and genomics – almost entirely by studying wild, free-living birds.