Tanya Shoot

Hi, I am Tanya Shoot.

I am a third-year PhD student with Dr. Noam Miller at Wilfrid Laurier University. My interests are how individual differences-- or personalities-- affect group behaviour, how animals are able to change their behaviours due to novel or costly environments, and how theoretical models in conjunction with empirical results can aid in pinpointing mechanisms that underlie collective behaviour.

If I am not at my laptop, or caring for animals, I can be found climbing at Grand River Rocks, cycling or running the KW trails.

Research Interests

Research

I received my BSc Honours from the Neuroscience program at the University of Western Ontario, where I worked under the supervision of Dr. David Sherry, with the collaboration of Dr. Susan Healy (University of St. Andrews, Scotland). While at Western, I studied how zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) change their nest-building behaviour to different ambient temperature conditions. From there, I earned my MSc with Dr. David Sherry and Dr. Mark Daley, which delved into how computational models can bring insight into avian incubation.

I am currently in my third-year of my PhD in Behavioural Cognitive Neuroscience at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo Canada. I am supervised by Dr. Noam Miller. For my PhD dissertation, I am creating and empirically testing a model of how individual traits affect group decision-making, using fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), zebra fish (Danio rerio), and guppies (Poecilia reticulata) as model organisms.

Outside The Lab

In my spare time

When I step away from computer programming and data analysis, I generally hop on my bicycle or grab a pair of running shoes and hit the trails in Kitchener-Waterloo, ON. I enjoy endurance sports, and have competed in sprint triathlons over the last couple of years, and am currently training for an olympic-distance triathlon in September 2022. I am also an avid knitter and climber.

I was an integral member of the organizing committee, in the newly-unionized Teaching Assistants (TAs) at Wilfrid Laurier University. I was interviewed by both The Cord (Laurier's student newspaper), and CBC as to how unionizing the TAs worked and the impact of being a part of a union holds. I was the first Local 902 President at Laurier for the 2019-2021 term. I am part of the bargaining team, where after two years we have reached the point of a ratification vote. It has been a lengthy process, but I am proud of the Collective Agreement we have worked so hard for.

I was also the chair of the tech support team for the Conference on Comparative Cognition, where I liaise with the executive members, and ensure that the conference goes on smoothly for the 2020 conference.

My husband Phil, and I are proud pet owners of two parrots, one ball python, and one adorable Lab.

Publications & Conferences

Publications

Edwards, S.C., Shoot, T.T., Martin, R.J., Sherry, D.F, & Healy, S.D. (2020). It's not all about temperature: Breeding success also affects nest design. Behavioral Ecology, 31(4). 1065-1072. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/araa052
Shoot, T.T., Long, A. T., & Miller, N.Y. (in prep.). Debugging collective digging in Drosophila melanogaster using theoretical models.
Shoot, T.T., Miller, N.Y & Long, A. T., (in prep.). Dynamic changes in cluster structure occur due to food quality in Drosophila melanogaster.

Conferences

Shoot, T.T., Martin, R. J., Sherry, D.F. (2017) “The role of temperature on nest structure in zebra finches” Western Student Research Conference (WSRC), London, Ontario, CA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Martin, R. J., Sherry, D.F. (2017) “The role of temperature in zebra finch nest building” Comparative Cognition Society (CO3), Melbourne, Florida, USA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Martin, R. J., Sherry, D.F. (2017) “Nest building under stress: How temperature affects nest structure in zebra finches” Animal Behaviour Society (ABS), Toronto, Ontario, CA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Martin, R. J., Sherry, D.F. (2017) “Role of temperature in zebra finch nest structure and incubation” Biology Graduate Research Forum (BGRF), London, Ontario, CA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2018) “Analyzing zebra finch incubation with computer algorithms” Western Research Forum (WRF), London, Ontario, CA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2018) “Analyzing zebra finch incubation with a computer algorithm” Comparative Cognition Society (CO3), Melbourne, Florida, USA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2018) “Can birds flexibly adapt incubation behaviour in varying environmental conditions?” Southern Ontario Neuroscience Association (SONA), Guelph, Ontario, CA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2018) “Implication of temperature on incubation behaviour: A hidden Markov Model method” Canadian Society of Ecology and Evolution (CSEE), Guelph, Ontario, CA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2018) “Zebra finch incubation behaviour depends on ambient temperature and experience: A hidden Markov model approach” International Ornithological Conference (IOC), Vancouver, British Columbia, CA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2019) “Understanding avian incubation with a computer algorithm” Conference on Comparative Cognition (CO3), Melbourne Beach, Florida, USA. [Poster]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2019) “Avian incubation: how previous hatchling success and ambient temperature can affect behaviour” Ontario Ecology, Ethology, and Evolution Conference (OE3C), Hamilton Ontario, CA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Edwards, S.C., Martin, R. J., Healy, S.D., Sherry, D.F., & Daley, M.J. (2019) “Should I sit or should I go? Temperature and hatchling success affects avian incubation” Animal Behaviour Society (ABS), Chicago, Illinois, USA. [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Long, T.A., & Miller, N.Y. (2020) “Bugs in the code: Using a computer model to understand fly larvae collective behaviour” International Student Symposium on Animal Behaviour and Cognition (ISSABC), Virtual [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Long, T.A., & Miller, N.Y. (2021) “The effect of population density on cluster size and timing of collective digging in Drosophila melanogaster: A theoretical approach” Conference on Comparative Cognition (CO3), Virtual [Talk]
Shoot, T.T., Miller, N.Y., & Long, T.A. (2022) “Food quality affects the structure of fruit fly groups when foraging collectively” Conference on Comparative Cognition (CO3), Virtual [Talk]

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