Many people wish they could talk to animals or at least understand what they are saying.
Missouri State University biology alum Danny Zapata is doing the next best thing. He is becoming an expert in animal vocalizations across different species.
Zapata’s Missouri Statement
During his studies at MSU from 2020 to 2022, Colombia native Zapata studied how male and female Carolina wrens defend their territories based on intrusions in the form of bird sounds.
He notes how biologists who study vocal communication in birds usually focus too much on birdsongs, and there’s a need to better understand other ways they communicate. This fueled his research.
“Mated pairs of these wrens usually stay together and defend a common area throughout the year,” he said. “I wanted to see how they would defend against a single male intruder, a single female intruder or a mated pair.”
For this, Zapata carried out experiments that simulated these intrusions by using loudspeakers.
“I played the song of the male or the call of the female and observed the birds’ responses,” he said.
A big part of his success comes from the immense support from his peers and mentors, like MSU assistant professor of biology Dr. Jay McEntee.
“Dr. McEntee gave me all the support I needed, like providing me with the means to do my project,” Zapata said. “But most importantly, he gave me a chance. And I will always be grateful for that. None of this would have been possible without him. I regard him highly and I consider him my colleague and my friend.”
Connections like these make all the difference.
“Danny was an amazing student and is a researcher with great scientific acumen, an absolute laser focus on his work and a work ethic in spades,” McEntee said. “He’s a scientist through and through. I believe he will accomplish a great deal as a researcher on acoustic communication.”
Zapata recently received the MSU Distinguished Thesis Award in the category of Biological/Life Sciences in recognition of his work.
Now and the future
After a strong start of research at MSU, Zapata is now studying a different animal in a different country.
“Currently, I’m a research assistant studying the vocal communication of chimpanzees in Ivory Coast, Africa, for the Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology through their Taï Chimpanzee Project,” he said.
Zapata hopes to use what he’s learned during these new experiences in his future aspirations in developing new and improved data collection methods.
“I hope I can make important discoveries throughout my career that allow us to understand how animals communicate. I want to contribute to the development of appropriate data analysis approaches in our field as they are often not taken very seriously,” he said. “Psychology has made more advances in this regard than biology and we need to catch up.”
After he finishes his time with the Taï Chimpanzee Project, Zapata hopes to continue researching in any aspect he can while he pursues his PhD.
“I want to continue my studies in the vocal communication of birds, especially those in the tropics, which are very understudied,” he said. “Eventually, I’d like to have my own lab in a university and help students who have strong interests in animal vocal communication and data analysis.”
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