The environment plays a large role in shaping someone’s future, especially their academic achievement. Children who have access to necessary resources, such as books, quality schools and teachers, have been shown to perform better in many subjects. In this study, we examined the associations between Socioeconomic Status (SES) and academic success in college-aged students. Also, we examined the choices that a student makes, such as amount of time spent in the workplace, and the format of classes taken (i.e., online, hybrid, face-to-face), and how they predict students’ academic success. SES was assessed by parent education and household income. We predicted that students who have a high SES will perform better academically than those who have a lower SES. Students who work full time will be more likely to take classes in an online format, to fit their work schedules. Conversely, students who work part time or not at all will take classes in the standard, face-to-face format. We predicted that students who work part time or not at all will perform better academically as they can dedicate more time and effort to their schooling than students who work full time. To answer our research questions, we examined college students who took a 30 minute online survey assessing SES, types of classes taken, how many hours worked in part-time and/or full-time jobs, and academic achievement (i.e., GPA). Implications of these results may inform colleges of the various needs of support based on types of classes taken to better students’ academic achievement. Future studies should examine additional measures of SES (e.g., Income-to-needs ratio) and how that impacts the associations between SES and academic achievement.

Knowing the age structure of a population improves demographic models, but birds lack many structures, such as teeth and otoliths, used to age other animals. Marking and following large numbers of individuals is required to know the age structure of a penguin population beyond the distinction between juvenile and adult plumage. In a large population of Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) at Punta Tombo, Argentina, we coded eye and foot color. The penguins ranged from less than one year to more than 28 years of age. We examined iris pattern and color, defining “distinct” eyes as reddish-colored irises with concentric red and pink rings and “indistinct” eyes as dark-brown irises. More than 75% of 2-3 year-old Magellanic penguins had distinct eyes, compared to 50-75% of 4-6 year-olds, 25-50% of 7-20 year olds, 10-25% of 21-24 year olds, and <10% of 25+ year olds (n=3262). Foot color progressed from mostly white to mottled to mostly black. We also examined foot color in a small known-age zoo population of Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti). In Humboldt penguins, feet became mostly black within a year of hatching, but continued to darken slowly with age (n=44, maximum age=25 years). In Magellanic penguins, feet took several years to become mostly black (n=190). Nestlings had mostly white feet with small specks of black (n=16). About 88% of adults 3-11 years old had mottled or mostly black feet, while the remaining 12% had white or fully black feet (n=90). 24 of 25 adults 23 years or older had black or almost black feet. Individual variation in both eyes and feet prevents aging an individual with a high degree of certainty, but a population may be split into broad adult age classes based on eye and foot color.

Climate change has lowered the reproductive success of the Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) population at Punta Tombo, Argentina contributing to the population’s 37% decline since 1987. While increased rainfall and storm intensity directly affect reproductive success through chick mortality, the indirect effects of weather can also impact fitness. We predicted that temperature would alter penguin behavior in two ways: 1) fewer penguins would leave the colony on hot days since traveling in heat requires more energy, and 2) penguins leave earlier on hot days to escape the highest temperatures of the day. Automatic scales that record weight, time, and direction were placed where penguins frequently exit and enter the colony. The scales also recorded the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) number of the penguins for 5,000 crossings, allowing us to calculate their trip duration. Days were considered hot if the maximum temperature was greater than two standard deviations above mean maximum temperature (>28℃, n=11 days) and cold days were less than two standard deviations below (<20℃, n=11 days). Temperature did not affect when penguins exited or entered the colony, however, more penguins exited and entered the colony on hot days than on cold. A greater number of penguins took short trips (<= 12 hours) on hot days than on cold days, suggesting they only go to the beach to cool down, rather than to forage. Increasing temperatures could lead to parents leaving their chicks alone at the nest for longer durations of time without foraging which could increase chick mortality.