Anne-Cathérine Gutzwiller | Research interests
- Behavioural adaptions to changing environments
- Social behaviour of birds
- Alpine ecology
PhD project
In extreme habitats, abrupt weather changes can quickly lead to fluctuations in resource availability. Cooperating with conspecifics for specific tasks, such as foraging, may be a strategy for adapting quickly and flexibly to variable conditions.
I study how the social behaviour of White-winged snowfinches is influenced by weather conditions and what consequences this has on their winter survival. Snowfinches live year-round in alpine regions where snowfall and wind can almost daily cover potential feeding sites. I am further interested in the individual variability in social strategies. Not all individuals benefit equally from social contacts under certain conditions.
The aim of my research is to characterize how sociality can help or constrain snowfinches in adapting to extreme environmental conditions, which are likely to become more prevalent with progressing climate warming.
Education and professional experience
| 2025– ongoing | Doctoral student, University of Basel and Swiss Ornithological Institute |
| 2020– 2022 | Master of Science in Animal Biology, University of Basel and Swiss Ornithological Institute. Thesis title: Intraspecific competition and winter sociality in white-winged snowfinches (Montifringilla nivalis) |
| 2017– 2020 | Bachelor of Science in Biology, University of Basel |
