Dr. Adriana Dorado-Correa

Impact of noise on singing behavior, stress physiology, vocal learning and reproductive success on songbirds
Anthropogenic noise has become a topic of increasing concern to conservation biologists as well as to those dealing with issues of human health and safety because our planet is becoming progressively urbanized. As a results noise levels are expected to increase even more strongly in the future. The exposure to chronic noise has been related to increased physiological stress responses, high blood pressure, hyperglycemia, elevated cholesterol levels, delays in brain development, impaired cognitive function and deficits in learning and memory. In children Chronic noise exposure has been associated with reading, language comprehension deficits and learning delays. Also it has been related with increased plasma glucocorticoid levels. Noise can interfere with signal detection or recognition in animals which rely on acoustic signals for communication. Additionally, the risk of predation or foraging success can be affected by masking noise, since noise can interfere with sounds produced by prey or predators.
For my research I use songbirds as model organisms to investigate the impact of noise on singing behavior, stress physiology, vocal learning and reproductive success.