Dr Alistair Dawson

Ecophysiologist

Research interests

The annual cycle of birds comprises a sequence of life history stages (the key ones being breeding and moult), each of which must occur at the appropriate time of year and in the appropriate relationship with each other in order for individuals to survive and reproduce successfully. Birds, as many other taxa, use the annual cycle in day length (photoperiod) as predictive proximate information to time the required changes in physiology that must precede each of these stages. So, for example, although the ultimate reason why a particular species of bird breeds when it does is the timing of availability of the food on which it feeds its young, the sequence of physiological changes that ultimately ends with eggs hatching at the appropriate time, must start many weeks beforehand. Food availability is of little use to time these physiological changes (certainly the early stages) and instead a surrogate cue is used, namely the change in photoperiod.

This means that climate change could create problems. Climate change may lead to warmer springs, and this will advance the time of food availability (since this is frequently invertebrate and therefore temperature dependent). So if birds rely entirely on photoperiod to time egg-laying, this will continue to occur at the same time of year, and not advance in line with the advance in the time of the food resource. The time of peak demand of young for food will occur later than peak food abundance. Consequently, breeding success will decline and this could lead to population declines.

My research has investigated how birds perceive and use photoperiod to control the start and duration of the breeding season, and the relationship between the end of breeding and the start and duration of moult. More recently, I have focused on the potential consequences of climate change: can birds adapt to climate change – what effect does temperature have on photoperiodic responses? One potential mitigation strategy that birds could adopt in response to climate change is to move to higher latitudes. Birds would then be exposed to a greater annual change in photoperiod and more rapid seasonal changes in photoperiod. What are the consequences of this on timing seasonal events?

Brief CV

• 2008 onwards: IMP Scientist, CEH at Edinburgh
• 2007-2011 President, British Ornithologists' Union
• 2004 onwards: Associate Editor, Functional Ecology
• 2002-2008: Deputy Director, Acting Director and Head of Site, CEH at Monks Wood
• 2003 onwards: Associate Editor, Ibis
• 2000-2004: President, International Society for Avian Endocrinology
• 1999 onwards: Individual Merit Promotion (IMP)
• 1996-2000: Chair, Scientific Committee, International Society for Avian Endocrinology
• 1995: DSc University of Wales
• 1993-2000: Head of Animal Ecology Section
• 1994-1998: Council Member, British Ornithologists' Union
• 1992-2004: Member, Committee of the International Society for Avian Endocrinology
• 1990-1994: Member, Scientific Advisory Committee to the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
• 1986-1994: Honorary Research Fellow, University of Bristol
• 1978-2008: Research at Monks Wood
• 1975-1978: PhD Endocrinology and energetics of fish, University of Wales, Bangor
• 1972-1975: BSc (Hons) Zoology, University of Wales, Bangor

Recent publications

See also the NERC Open Research Archive.

Visser, M., Schaper, S., Holleman, L., Dawson, A., Sharp, P.J. Gienapp, P. & Caro, S. (2011). Genetic variation in cue sensitivity involved in avian timing of reproduction. Functional Ecology. In press. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2435.2011.01844.x

Ouyang, J., Sharp, P.J., Dawson, A., Quetting, M. & Hau, M. (2011). Hormone levels predict individual differences in reproductive success in a passerine bird. Proceedings of the Royal Society, London Series B. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2010.2490

Newton, I. & Dawson A. (2011). Seasonal changes in moult, body mass and reproductive condition in Siskins Carduelis spinus exposed to daylength regimes simulating different latitudes. Journal of Avian Biology. 42: 22-28. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-048X.2010.05249.x

Markman, S., Müller, C.T., Pascoe, D., Dawson, A. & Buchanan, K.L. (2011). Endocrine disrupting chemicals alter immunocompetence and growth rate in nestling starlings Sturnus vulgaris. Journal of Applied Ecology 48: 391-397. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2664.2010.01931.x

Crossin, G.T., Trathan, P.N., Phillips, R.A., Dawson, A., Le Bouard, F. & Williams, T.D. (2010). A carry-over effect of migration underlies individual variation in reproductive readiness and extreme egg size dimorphism in macaroni penguins. American Naturalist. 176: 357-366. doi: 10.1086/655223

Kumar, V., Wingfield J.C., Dawson, A., Ramenofsky, M., Ranee, S. & Bartell, P. (2010). Biological clocks and regulation of seasonal reproduction and migration in birds. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology. 83: 827-835. doi: 10.1086/652243

Thackeray, S.J. et al. (2010). Trophic level asynchrony in rates of phenological change for marine, freshwater and terrestrial environments. Global Change Biology 16; 3304–3313. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02165.x

Dawson, A. & Sharp, P.J. (2010). Seasonal changes in concentrations of plasma LH and prolactin associated with the advance in the development of photorefractoriness and molt by high temperature in the starling. General and Comparative Endocrinology 167: 122–127. doi:10.1016/j.ygcen.2010.02.004