Communication between eggs and at the nest

The production and appropriate use of vocal signals develops over an individual’s lifetime and is refined by experience. In many species, e.g., many birds, the first sounds and vocalizations are produced before hatching. Using a combination of lab experiments on domestic chicken eggs and acoustic recordings from pūkeko nests, I aim to investigate
1) the development of vocalizations prior to hatching
2) the mechanism of sound mediated hatching synchronization and
3) the vocal interactions among adults and chicks at the nest with regards to social and environmental factors.