Clinton Francis
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, CA·Ecology & Evolution
Human activity is making the world brighter at night and noisier. Artificial light and traffic or industrial noise are forms of sensory pollution, and some animals cope with them better than others.
- Fields
Ecology & Evolution
Biology
Physiology
- Topics
sensory pollution
light pollution
artificial light at night
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Aug 2028
What they work on
- Test whether noise and light pollution consistently favor a similar set of traits across six songbird species that differ in life history and tolerance of humans.
- Measure stress hormones (glucocorticoids), melatonin, testosterone, hormone receptors and clock genes in nesting birds across gradients of light and noise to define physiological responses to sensory pollution.
- Link behaviors such as aggression, boldness, song structure, nest settlement and movement to breeding outcomes like clutch size and fledgling survival, using structural equation models.
- Determine how combined light and noise exposure affects birds from individual physiology to reproductive success, and identify species differences that explain sensitivity.
More about the research
This collaborative project asks whether light and noise pollution push wild birds toward a similar set of traits. It also asks how changes in body chemistry and behavior add up to differences in breeding success and, in turn, which species are likely to decline or thrive.
Why it matters
As light and noise spread with human development, wildlife managers need ways to predict which species are at risk. A general framework linking bird physiology, behavior and breeding success to light and noise could help identify vulnerable species. Through partnerships with the National Park Service and the International Dark-Sky Association, the findings are meant to inform policy on reducing light and noise pollution.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
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Kimberly Rosvall
Indiana University, IN·Ecology & Evolution·Early-career
Identify causes and consequences of individual differences in how tree swallows behave under heat, by warming nest cavities with heat packs and cross-fostering chicks between nests.
Alejandro Velez Melendez
University of Tennessee-Knoxville, TN·Ecology & Evolution·Early-career
Characterize the soundscapes and mating calls of Pacific chorus frog populations living with low and high levels of natural and human-made noise across urban and rural San Francisco Bay Area sites.
The school
California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo: 7 labs on PI Pages, $38M a year on research.
More about California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
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