Supervisor team: Ruedi Nager, Dorothy McKeegan, Dominic McCafferty
In this project the student will develop an alternative measurement to current invasive tools for monitoring animal welfare. Reliable, non-invasive measurements of stress in animals are extremely important tools for welfare assessment. Current approaches rely on the measurement of physiological indices, most commonly plasma concentration of glucocorticoids. While this approach is well established, it is invasive and has limitations because different circumstances can elicit similar glucocorticoid responses. The aim of this project is to develop novel, more broadly applicable and non-invasive tools to measure the stress response. Growing evidence suggests that changes in peripheral temperature accompany the stress response, which will allow us to develop a novel and non-invasive welfare assessment technique that uses infra-red thermography to monitor changes in the birds’ peripheral temperature. Such a new tool will greatly benefit the welfare assessment and can be applied in a range of avian research contexts.
The student will develop key skills in avian research involving temperature and biochemical assessment of stress responses, as well as expertise in experimental design and analysis. This will provide opportunities for both pure and applied aspects of animal welfare research in both captive and wild animals.
Funding Details – This is a 4-year PhD studentships doctoral funded by BBSRC, the start date is October 2012 and applicants will normally be expected to reside (or have residency) within the UK or EU. The financial package will include a four year stipend (£13,848 pa), approved University fees, Research Training Support Grant and a Conference Allowance.
How to apply – Prospective students should apply online at
On the Programme of Study section of the application please select “Neuroscience and Biological Sciences PhD” from the drop down menu. On this same page please place their preferred project title(s) within the free text area and note the project supervisor(s) [see above] within the relevant section. Application deadline is Friday 27th January 2012.
Please note the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences is advertising a selection of studentships in the realistic expectation that only the most competitive applicants will be funded.
For further details see
http://www.gla.ac.uk/colleges/mvls/graduateschool/informationforprospectivestudents/phdandmresscholarships/phdprogrammes/