MARCO FESTA-BIANCHET, Full Professor
MARCO
FESTA-BIANCHET, Full Professor
E-mail : Marco.Festa-Bianchet@USherbrooke.ca
Telephone : (819) 821-8000 ext 62061
Fax : (819) 821-8049
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Ram Mountain, June 2008
The ewes (e13, 9 years old with are mother and daughter, and both appear addicted to
salt. e13 had already lost her lamb, while j5
was pregnant |
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Caw Ridge, June 2000
2-year-old male # 226 weighed 43 kg. He was last seen in early August and may have emigrated. |
Degrees
B.Sc. (Zoology), University of Alberta (1981)
M.Sc. (Zoology), University of Alberta (1982)
Ph.D. (Behavioral Ecology), University of Calgary (1987)
NATO Science Postdoctoral Fellow, Large Animal Research Group,
Cambridge, UK (1987 to 1990)
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Ewe # 132 in 1986 at 2 years of age (left) and in 2000 at 16 years. She disappeared the following winter. She produced 14 lambs, of which 5 survived to 1 year of age. |  |
Research Program
Animal ecology: individual reproductive success, reproductive strategy, population dynamics and conservation of mammals
Research Goals
My research program aims to understand the effects of individual differences on reproductive success and on population dynamics of large mammals. Large mammals are long-lived, highly iteroparous, and their population dynamics often show strong time-lags. Therefore, long-term monitoring of marked individuals is the most reliable and productive technique to test theories on their reproductive success and population dynamics. I seek to produce knowledge useful for wildlife management and for the conservation of biodiversity in mountain ecosystems. With mixed success, I claim that evolutionary ecology is important for biodiversity conservation and wildlife management.
Current Research Projects:
Reproductive success, parasites and population dynamics of bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis). Sheep River, Southwestern Alberta, Canada. This study began in 1981 and over 700 bighorns have been marked. It seeks to elucidate the factors that affect female reproductive success, reproductive strategy, and population dynamics. Factors studied include lungworm infection, ewe age, lamb sex, lamb birthdate, maternal behavior, previous reproduction, disease, seasonal migrations and population density. Collaborations with Jack Hogg of the Montana Conservation Science Institute and dave Coltman of the University of Alberta have extended this research to study relationship between genotype, survival and reproductive success of both sexes.
Reproductive success and population dynamics of mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus). Caw Ridge, West-central Alberta. This study began in 1988, in cooperation with Kirby Smith, Alberta Natural Resources Service. Steeve Côté of Université Laval now leads the project. We are exploring the long-term effects of dominance status, kin relationships, and horn and body size on individual reproductive success and on population dynamics. Almost 400 goats have been marked.
Management and population dynamics of bighorn sheep. Ram Mountain, West-Central Alberta. In cooperation with Jon Jorgenson of Alberta Natural Resources Service and David Coltman of the University of Alberta, this study's unique assets include a fully marked population, a 34-year data base, complete life histories and repeated weights and body measurements for over 900 individuals. Research goals include the study of population dynamics and individual reproductive success under varying population density. This study includes experimental manipulations of density and of individual reproductive effort, as well as experimental changes in hunting regulations. Recently, we have been looking at the selective effects of trophy hunting.
Demography of ungulates. In collaboration with Jean-Michel Gaillard, CNRS, Lyon, France. We combine long-term data from my three study populations with data on individual roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), ibex (Capra ibex), chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra), isard (R. pyrenaica) and data from the literature to explore interspecific patterns of survival, population dynamics and life-history evolution.
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"Blue-blue" (#35T), 11 years old, visiting the trap at Ram Mountain, July 1999. He fathered at least 10 lambs in his last 2 ruts, but was shot illegally in September 1999. Blue-blue was known for his love of salt and his lack of respect for handlers in the trap. |
Selected recent publications:
Autors underlined are graduate students and postdoctoral fellows under my supervision
Festa-Bianchet, M. and S.D. Côté. 2008.
Mountain Goats: Ecology, Behavior and Conservation of an Alpine
Ungulate. Island
Press, Washington.
Toïgo, C., J.-M. Gaillard, M. Festa-Bianchet, É. Largo, J. Michaellet and D.
Maillard. 2007. Sex- and age-specific survival of the highly dimorphic
Apine ibex: evidence for a conservative life history tactic.
Journal of Animal Ecology, 76: 679-686.
Pelletier, F., D. Réale, D. Garant, D.W. Coltman and M.
Festa-Bianchet. 2007. Selection on heritable seasonal plasticity of
body mass. Evolution, 61: 1969-1979.
A.Ø. Mooers, L.R. Prugh, M. Festa-Bianchet and J.A. Hutchings.
2007. Biases in legal listings under Canadian Endangered Species
legislation. Conservation Biology, 21: 572-575.
Pelletier, F., J.T.
Hogg and M. Festa-Bianchet. 2006. Male reproductive effort in a
polygynous ungulate. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 60: 645-654.
Festa-Bianchet, M., T. Coulson, J.-M. Gaillard, J.T. Hogg and F.
Pelletier. 2006
Stochastic predation events and population persistence
in bighorn sheep. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 273:
1537-1543.
Pelletier, F. and
M. Festa-Bianchet. 2006. Sexual selection and
social rank in bighorn rams. Animal Behaviour, 71: 649-655.
Coltman, D.W., P. O’Donoghue, J.T. Hogg and M. Festa-Bianchet. 2005
Selection and genetic (co)variance in bighorn sheep. Evolution,
59: 1372-1382.
Coulson, T., J.-M. Gaillard and M. Festa-Bianchet. 2005. Decomposing the variation in ungulate population growth into contributions from multiple vital rates. Journal of Animal Ecology, 74: 789-801.
Jacobson, A. R., A. Provenzale, A. von Hardenberg, B. Bassano and M. Festa-Bianchet. 2004. Climate forcing and density-dependence in a mountain ungulate population. Ecology 8:, 1598-1610.
Festa-Bianchet, M., D.W. Coltman, L. Turelli and J.T. Jorgenson. 2004. Relative allocation to horn and body growth in bighorn rams varies with resource availability. Behavioral Ecology 15: 305-312.
Coltman, D. W., P. O'Donoghue, J. T. Jorgenson, J. T. Hogg, C. Strobeck and M. Festa-Bianchet. 2003. Undesirable evolutionary conseqences of trophy hunting. Nature, 426: 655-658.
Festa-Bianchet, M., J.-M. Gaillard and S.D. Côté. 2003. Variable age structure and apparent density-dependence in survival of adult ungulates. Journal of Animal Ecology, 72: 640-649.
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Available from Island Press |
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Available
from Island Press |
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Complete list of publications (with .pdf's for most recent papers)
Graduate students
Current:
| Marco
Rughetti, Ph.D. Ecology and management of Alpine chamois. Female # 25 was caught in the Ischiator Valley in Piedmont, Italian Alps, at 2300 m elevation. In summer 2007 she is 8 years old and nursing a kid. |
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Élise
Rioux-Paquette, M.Sc. Inbreeding and physical development in bighorn sheep. The lamb (male n2) weighed 6 kg on May 28, 2008. His mother is ewe f1, 8 years old. |
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Julien
Martin, Ph.D. Female reproductive strategies in
ungulates. Ewe Green P (i6) was 3 years old in 2006, when she
gave birth but her lamb died
neonatally. In summer 2007, her male lamb survived to
September. |
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Pamela Hengeveld, M.Sc.
Management of bighorn sheep Here she's handling a caribou! |
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Marie-France Barette, Ph.D.
Hormones and social behavior of meerkats. Co-supervised with Andrew Russel (U. of Sheffield) and in collaboration with Prof. Tim Clutton-Brock (U. Cambridge)
(aren't they cute!) |
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| Aurélie
Bourbeau-Lemieux, M. Sc. Population ecology of bighorn sheep. Female lamb #334 weighed 32 kg in late October 2007 and is doing well so far. Aurélie is also doing very well. |
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| Paulo Corti. Ph.D. Mating system,
conservation and ecology of huemul deer in Chile. The 6
months-old fawn is Moro, he was caught in November 2006 and
radio ear-tagged. His mother is Escarchilla and both were alive
in May 2007. Cougars are killing bighorn sheep in our study areas
in Alberta
and other cougars are killing our marked huemul in Patagonia! |
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Postdoctoral Fellows and research associates
Mauro Lucherini (Laurea, Milano, Italy): 1992-1993 (fellowship from the Italian Foreign Affairs Ministry). Life-history strategies of bighorn sheep. Mauro is now a lecturer in Argentina
Richard Bon (Ph.D. Toulouse, France): 1993-94 (fellowship from the French Foreign Affairs Ministry). Evolution of sociality in ovids. Richard is now a lecturer in Toulouse, France.
Denis Réale (Ph.D. Rennes, France): 1997-1999 (fellowship
from the Fyssen foundation (France)). Heritability of
morphological and life-history traits in bighorn sheep. Denis now
holds a Canada Research Chair in Behavioral Ecology at the
Université du Québec a Montréal. Check out
his website.
| David Coltman (Ph.D. Dalhousie): 2000 (NSERC fellow).
Co-supervised with Dr. Curtis Strobeck, University of Alberta.
Genotype, selection and evolution of morphological and life-history
traits in bighorn sheep. Here he relaxes watching bighorn sheep at Ram
Mountain.
Dave is now an Associate Professor at the University of Alberta, and the 'gel jockey' for our research on bighorn sheep, mountain goats and Alpine ibex. |
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| Interested in graduate studies under my supervision? look here |
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2-year-old billy #82 in a
Clover trap at Caw Ridge, August 1992.
He died at 5 years of age of unknown causes. |
Check out the
ALPINE UNGULATE RESEARCH PROJECTS
page
Conservation activities:
Past Chair (2002-2006) of COSEWIC (the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada) and current Co-Chair of the Terrestrial Mammals Subcommittee. I also Chair the IUCN Caprinae specialist group.
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Adult bighorn rams at Sheep
River in June1999
# 240 (white/yellow) is 7 years old. His mother (ewe #252) was the only known immigrant ewe to reproduce at Sheep River. # 222 (white/black) is 9 years old. He was born to a 9-year-old ewe (#96) who was killed by a cougar 4 years later. Rams # 240 and 222 disappeared during winter 2001-2002. |
Last update:
April5, 2008
Visits since April 2007:
Contents of this web page are the sole responsibility of its author and do not imply any endorsement by the Université de Sherbrooke
