Shayne R. Halter, UNM Department of Biology
Wednesday, April 9, 2025 — 7:00 pm
Unitarian Universalist Church
Hummingbirds use energy at extremely high rates, especially during migrations. To survive these long trips, they must maintain adequate amounts of body fat for fuel. Shayne’s research investigates how four species of hummingbirds balance their energy levels, as they transit the arid landscapes of the American Southwest. He combines measurements from feathers, body fat, and metabolism, to map migration and energy budgets, to determine how hummingbirds adjust for energy shortfalls. His emphasis is on how hummingbirds use nocturnal torpor to conserve fat during migrations. This research will help us assess hummingbird health and develop conservation measures, as climate and land-use change make food resources less predictable in the Southwest.
Shayne Halter was born in Las Vegas, Nevada and moved to Castle Rock, Colorado in his early teens. At Metropolitan State University of Denver he earned a BS in Aerospace Science, and spent over 20 years in the US Air Force as a navigator in C-130 Hercules aircraft. After retirement, he took classes at the University of New Mexico, earning a BS in Anthropology and MS in Biology. Shayne is currently completing a Ph.D. in Biology, with Dr. Blair Wolf. Shayne focuses on animal physiology and how animals cope with extremes in temperature and food supply. His recreational pastimes include skiing, mountain biking, camping, hiking, and birding.