There and back again: Olfactory research with King penguins and life in the sub-Antarctic

Dr. Gregory Cunningham is a Professor of Biology at St. John Fisher University in Rochester, NY and a Visiting Professor in the Computer Science, Mathematics and Environmental Science Department at AUP. His area of expertise pertains to studying how birds use their sense of smell. Although his focus has long been studying how sub-Antarctic birds use odours to find food and as an aid in homing, he has also studied olfaction in tropical nocturnal birds, South African penguins, red-tailed hawks and chickens in the lab. His talk will focus on research conducted during a recent sabbatical, where he took important first steps in furthering our understanding of one of the sub-Antarctic’s most emblematic birds, the King penguin. The talk will also discuss what it’s like to live in one of the most remote places on Earth, surrounded by birds, seals and other fantastic animals.