Dr. Marcelo Araya Salas, post-doctoral researcher, studies the evolution of vocal learning in hummingbirds. Vocal learning is only found in a handful of mammals, including humans, and in three avian orders: songbirds, parrots and hummingbirds. Using techniques for measuring and classifying vocalizations of 272 species of hummingbirds and combining these data with techniques for looking at the evolutionary relationships among hummingbirds (phylogenetic comparisons), Dr. Araya Salas wants to identify the factors that influence vocal learning.
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