Food shortage decreases resistance to a viral disease

In French Guiana, recurrent episodes of mortality of chick frigatebirds due to a viral disease that first appeared in 2005 have recently turned into massive mortality episodes (85–95%) of chicks. One of the suggested hypotheses behind the appearance of the disease is food limitation due to the recent decline of local shrimp fishery boats on which frigatebirds rely for opportunistic feeding. This study shows that food supplementation protected all chicks from the appearance of clinical signs of the disease and increased survival perspectives of sick chicks. These results suggest that food shortage might decrease resistance of chicks to infectious diseases and that using a specifically tailored food supplementation regime could be a complementary tool to protect frigatebirds and other endangered birds from disease outbreaks threatening them with extinction.

Oxidative stress markers in African carnivores

Physiological measurement tools have strong potential to uncover unnoticed costs that might negatively affect fitness in the long-term, particularly in threatened species such as the cheetah and the leopard. The use of oxidative status markers in combination with other physiological markers might enhance the success of conservation and management programs of endangered carnivores. These two recent articles on cheetahs Acinonyx jubatus and leopards Panthera pardus (Costantini et al., 2017; Costantini et al., 2019) enabled to identify some potential socioecological and environmental factors that explain variation of oxidative stress markers in these two threatened feline species

News from the North Pole

I am currently doing fieldwork in North Pole together with French colleagues. The project will be looking at the effects of contaminants on the black-legged kittiwakes. Greetings from the French-German Arctic Research Base AWIPEV in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard.

Western tarsier research project begins

The Western Tarsier (Cephalopachus bancanus borneanus) is listed as ‘vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List and the population trend is considered to be decreasing. I have started a project in collaboration with the Danau Girang Field Centre (Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia) aimed to elucidating which factors are responsible for such a decline and to developing an effective conservation strategy. The biology and ecology of this little creature are also poorly known. So it will also be a great opportunity to know more about this unique species.

Workshop LiGA 2015

Congratulations to Manrico on giving his first conference talk. He presented some results of his PhD work at Workshop Littoral de Guyane sous influence amazonienne (24-28 November) in the tropical warmth of Cayenne in French Guiana.

Fieldwork on magnificent frigatebirds in French Guiana begins

The project on the causes and consequences of herpes virus infection in the Magnificent frigatebird has started in June 2015. The fieldwork is carried out in the Réserve Naturelle de l’île du Grand Connétable in French Guiana. This first field season went well and we could take many blood samples. A big thank you to the staff of the Réserve Naturelle de l’île du Grand Connétable for their help and friendship. And last but not least we thank the Research Foundation of Flanders for financial support.

About me and this website

My fascination in science stems from my passion for wildlife and nature in general. My curiosity about life is what drives me to explore new areas of research and to work on new species and in new environments. In this website I will keep you informed on my work.

‘‘Nothing will destroy the science and mission of conservation biology faster than a generation or two of biologists raised on dead facts and technology and lacking direct, personal experience with Nature’’ (Noss R., 1996, The naturalists are dying off. Cons. Biol., 10: 1–3)

Top scientists

A recent database of 100,000 world most-cited authors across all scientific fields has been published. It has been emotional to see that I am part of this list! Keep up the good work. Ad maiora!

Oxidative Stress and Hormesis in Evolutionary Ecology and Physiology

This book illustrates how and why oxidative stress and hormesis have contributed to shape biological diversity, from organism life-histories and behavioural profiles to morphological phenotypes and ageing mechanisms. The book offers fascinating insights into how organisms work and how they evolve to sustain their physiological functions under a vast array of environmental conditions.

Chapter 1: Historical and Contemporary Issues of Oxidative Stress, Hormesis and Life History Evolution; Chapter 2: Early Life Hormesis and Oxidative Experiences Fine-Tune the Adult Phenotype; Chapter 3: Variation in Oxidative Stress Threats and Hormesis Across Environments; Chapter 4: Nutritional Ecology, Foraging Strategies and Food Selection; Chapter 5: Coping with Physical Activity and Inactivity; Chapter 6: The Costs of Makeup in Sexual Selection and Social Signalling; Chapter 7: The Role of Oxidative Stress and Hormesis in Shaping Reproductive Strategies from Mating Systems to Parental Care; Chapter 8: Combating Parasites: Immune Response and Inflammation; Chapter 9: Variation Within and Among Species in Resistance to Oxidative Stress and Hormetic Responses; Chapter 10: Integrating Oxidative Stress and Hormesis into Research on Senescence and Survival Perspectives

The Kestrel: Ecology, Behaviour and Conservation of an Open-Land Predator

I am super happy to announce that my monograph about the common kestrel (and more) is out in Cambridge University Press.

Table of Contents
1. Systematics and evolution of kestrels
2. Feeding ecology
3. Habitat use
4. Breeding density and nest site selection
5. Colourations, sexual selection and mating behavior
6. The reproductive cycle: from egg laying to offspring care
7. Ecological physiology and immunology
8. Environmental toxicology
9. Movement ecology
10. Conservation status and population dynamics.