MigraGenes · Genetics of long-distance migration

It is firmly established that the migratory behaviour of animals is largely genetically hard-wired. However, we do not know the genes involved, where these are expressed and how the genetic code guides individuals to fly in a specific direction for more than a month, across deserts, mountain ranges or oceans, to finally reach a wintering area on the other side of the globe. To approach these gaps of knowledge, I propose a coherent research program that builds on my long-term research of migratory genetics. I will use different species of migratory songbirds to investigate three key questions in migratory genetics: (1) how does the inherited migratory program instruct the juvenile on its first journey?, (2) which are the genes that control migratory behaviour and when and where are they expressed? and (3) how have migratory genes evolved across species with different migratory behaviours? The three parts of this program are designed to maximize gain of new knowledge by combining large scale field studies with cutting-edge molecular techniques. I will carry out a translocation experiment and combine it with state-of-the-art tracking methodology to determine how direction of navigation is inherited. By profiling the expression patterns of genes in the brain before and during the first phase of migration using both spatial and single-cell transcriptomics, I will uncover the mainly unknown migration genes and regulatory networks as well as where in the brain these are expressed. Through comparative genomics on the species-rich genus Phylloscopus (in which migration has been lost, gained and increased in distance multiple times during its diversification), I will explore how migration genes have evolved in concert with the migratory behaviours. In summary, this project has the potential to finally identify the elusive migration genes and add milestones in our understanding of the genetic architecture and regulation of long-distance migration.