Objective
Sensory systems enable animals to perceive their worlds and make adaptive decisions for survival. However, finding out about the world outside is energetically expensive: it involves complex sensory systems to collect the information, and dedicated neural systems to process it. Therefore, the benefits of acquiring information need to be balanced against the costs of receiving and processing it. Consequently, evolution has equipped animals with sensory systems that fit their lifestyle and environment, to give them the information they need to enhance their survival and reproduction. However, most, if not all, animals have multiple sensory systems: how should investment in different sensory systems be balanced, and what factors affect the trade-off between investment in different sensory modalities? When environmental constraints limit the usefulness of specific sensory modalities (e.g. living in the dark), shifts in investment in different sensory modalities can occur. What is not known is how trade-offs occur between sensory modalities that are still useful to an animal, but perhaps their relative importance changes according to lifestyle or environmental factors. This project aims to investigate the trade-off that occurs in diurnal species between the visual and olfactory systems, and explain why it occurs. I will use insects as a model system, since their neural structures, ecologies and sensory systems are well studied, and can be easily measured. I will measure the relative size of olfactory and visual systems within insect species, and test if predatory species or those that fly (i.e. species that need to rapidly assess changes in their environment) invest more in vision than olfaction. I will also test if the sizes of neural structures associated with each modality correlate with sensory ability. The project will provide the first concrete evidence that sensory capabilities are traded-off against one another, and identify the reasons why.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences ecology evolutionary ecology
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology entomology
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2015
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
NE1 7RU Newcastle Upon Tyne
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.