1. Song development in nightingales
2. Hierarchical memory

Nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos) are renowned for their singing bravura: Through the course of a single night, a male may sing several thousand songs, comprising a bewildering variety of more than 200 different song types. Like most songbirds, nightingales learn their songs from adult tutors during their first year of life and one of our main research interests focuses on the learning strategies and memory mechanisms that enable nightingales to acquire such large repertoires. A second area of study investigates the function and use of song: What songs do females prefer, how do males interact vocally, how does habitat use and song interact?