Projet
Quantifying the Impact of Capsaicin on Birds and SquirrelsMy section of this project concerns the impact of capsaicin on wild birds' thermoregulation ability and overwinter survival. We will present a population of black-capped chickadees and pine siskins with either a control or capsaicin-treated diet according to the levels found in commercial birdseed, then measure potential physiological impacts. I will visit l’Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR)’s aviary facilities, where the birds are housed under indoor but semi-natural conditions, allowing us to replicate average local summer and winter temperatures of 20 oC and -10 oC. We will contrast the mass fluctuations of both populations against ambient temperature to investigate whether capsaicin-consuming birds remain able to optimally trade off energy reserve and predation risk. We will also stay vigilant for signs of discomfort or aversion to capsaicin.
