Current ISBE Newsletter - Autumn 2008 Vol 20(2)
Spotlight on ...
Virginia Belloni | Nathan Morehouse | Jessica L. Ward | Rindy C. Anderson
Name: Virginia Belloni
Education: Laurea (BSc & MSc) (2002) Univ. Florence; Master (2003) Univ. Florence; PhD (2006) Univ. Florence and Inst of Health of Rome
Current Address: Dept Evol Biol Leo Pardi, via Romana 17, 50125 Florence, Italy;
Email: belloni.v@gmail.com
Research Interests: Environmental contaminants, behavioural and ecological factors involved in reproductive performance and survival, social and cooperative behaviour in birds
Selected papers:
Belloni V, Alleva E, Dessì-Fulgheri F, Zaccaroni M, Santucci D. 2007. Effects of low doses of atrazine on the neurobehavioral development in mice pups. Ethol Ecol Evol. 19: 309-322.
Della Seta D, Minder I, Belloni V, Aloisi AM, Dessì-Fulgheri F, Farabollini F. 2006. Pubertal exposure to estrogenic chemical affects behavior in juvenile and adult male rats. Horm Behav. 50: 301-307
Giusi G, Facciolo RM, Canonaco M, Alleva E, Belloni V, Dessì-Fulgheri F, Santucci D. 2006. The endocrine disruptor atrazine accounts for a dimorphic somatostatinergic neural pattern in mice. Toxicol Sci. 89: 254-267
Name: Nathan Morehouse
Education: BSc (2000) Cornell Univ; PhD (expected: Feb 2009), Arizona State Univ
Current address: School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-4601, USA;
Email: nmorehouse@asu.edu
Research interests: Evolution of sexual dimorphism, visual signalling, optical mechanisms of bright colour production, nutrient limitations and life history evolution, stoichiometry of sexually-selected characters.
Selected papers:
Shawkey M, Morehouse NI, Vukusic P. 2009. A protean palette: Color materials and mixing in birds and butterflies. J R Soc Interface.
McGraw KJ, Toomey, MB, Nolan, PM, Morehouse NI, Massaro M, Jouventin P. 2007. A description of unique fluorescent yellow pigments in penguin feathers. Pigm Cell Res, 20, 301-304.
Rutowski RL, Macedonia J, Merry J, Morehouse NI, Yturralde K, Taylor-Taft L, Gaalema D, Kemp DJ, Papke RS. 2007. Iridescent ultraviolet signaling in the Orange Sulphur butterfly (Colias eurytheme): Spatial, temporal and spectral properties. Biol J Linn Soc. 90, 349-364.
Name: Jessica L. Ward
Education: Hon. BSc (2002) Univ of Toronto; PhD (expected: 2009) Univ of Toronto
Current address: Dept of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Univ of Toronto, 25 Harbord St. Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G5 Canada;
Email: jess.ward@utoronto.ca
Research interests: Sexual selection, animal communication, speciation, sexual conflict. Signal evolution and mating dynamics in divergent genetic lineages of brook stickleback.
Selected papers:
Ward JL, McLennan DA. in press. Historical and ecological correlates of body shape in the brook stickleback, Culaea inconstans. Biol J Linn Soc.
McLennan DA, Ward JL. 2007. Conservation and diversification of agonistic displays of the brook stickleback Culaea inconstans. Environ Biol Fishes. 82:377-384
Ward JL, McLennan DA. 2006. The relative influences of sexual and natural selection upon the evolution of male nuptial colouration in the brook stickleback, Culaea inconstans. Behaviour 143:483-510
Name: Rindy C. Anderson
Education: BSc (1994) Arizona State Univ.; MSc (2000) Univ of San Diego, San Diego; PhD (2006), Univ of Miami.
Current address: Dept of Biology, Duke Univ, Durham, NC, USA;
Email: rca9@duke.edu
Research interests:Evolution of animal communication, sexual selection, cognitive mechanisms of signal perception and mate choice, aggressive behavior.
Selected papers:
Anderson RC, Searcy WA, Peters S Nowicki S (2008). Soft song in the song sparrow: acoustic analysis and implications for signal function. Ethology 114: 662-676
Anderson RC, Nowicki S, Searcy WA. (2007). Soft song in song sparrows: response of males and females to an enigmatic signal. Behav Ecol Sociobiol. 61:1267-1274
Searcy WA, Anderson RC, & Nowicki S. (2006). Bird song as a signal of aggressive intent. Behav Ecol Sociobiol. 60: 234-241
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