Dr Nathalie Pettorelli

Curriculum Vitae:

• January 2013: Joined the IUCN Mangrove Specialist Group
• Fall 2012: Became an invited lecturer at the Global Change Ecology Master Programme, Bayreuth
• Winter 2011: Became a GEO BON Member
• July 2011: Honorary Lecturer position, University College London (UCL)
• June 2010: L'Oréal UK and Ireland Fellowship for Women in Science
• August 2009-November 2009: Secondment at the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), Cambridge, to work on REDD issues.
• April 2009-Present: Institute Research Fellow at the Institute of Zoology.
• April 2006-March 2009: Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the Institute of Zoology
• September 2005-March 2006: Postdoctoral position at the University Laval, Québec, under the supervision of Steeve Coté and Jean Huot (Chaire CRSNG – Produits forestiers Anticosti).
• December 2003-August 2005: European Fellowship (Marie Curie) for a two-year proposal entitled “Coupling vegetation dynamics and deer performance in Norway and France” at the University of Oslo, with Atle Mysterud and Nils Chr. Stenseth.
• December 2002-November 2003: Lavoisier Fellowship (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France) for a one-year proposal entitled “Coupling phenology and red deer body mass in the West Coast of Norway” at the University of Oslo, with Atle Mysterud and Nils Chr. Stenseth.
• 1999-2002: Ph.D. Thesis “Individual variability and population dynamics: the importance of space”, with J.M. Gaillard (UMR CNRS 5558, University of Lyon).
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Research Interests:

My scientific interests lie in population ecology, which is a major sub-field of ecology dealing with the dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the environment. More precisely, my research focuses on identifying the factors determining the presence, abundance and population dynamics of terrestrial mammals. By doing this, my goal is not only to generate results relevant to the academic world, but also to use the generated knowledge to inform conservation policy and management.

I completed my PhD at the Laboratory of Biometry and Evolutionary Biology in Lyon, France. My Ph.D. project aimed at describing and quantifying the impact of spatial variation in habitat quality on the individual performance and dynamics of a roe deer population monitored for more than 25 years in the south west of France (Chizé). This interdisciplinary Ph.D. (which involved nutritional ecology, botany, population dynamics, management, spatial statistics and multivariate analyses) was the result of the collaboration between the Centre National de la Recherche (CNRS) in Lyon and Chizé (Drs. Gaillard, Duncan, Chessel, and Dray), the Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage (ONCFS), and the Office National des Forets (ONF).

My two Postdoctoral positions at the Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, (CEES, University of Oslo, Norway), were successively funded by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Lavoisier fellowship) and a European fellowship (Marie Curie). They focused on the use of satellite-based data (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI) in ecology, more particularly in population dynamics of large herbivores (reindeer, roe deer, red deer). More specifically, the aim was to quantify the relationships between vegetation dynamics, seasonal dispersal and individual performance at multiple spatial and temporal scales. This project was among the first ones examining the use of satellite data in vertebrates’ population dynamics, and such work was made possible thanks to collaboration with many universities (i.e. Oslo, Tromsø, Svalbard, Lyon, and Ås).

After spending 8 months at Laval University (Quebec) addressing similar questions to those worked on in France and Norway, I joined the Institute of Zoology in April 2006, and started to work on cheetah demography in the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. This new project allowed me to apply the key methodologies I have developed as part of my previous work to carnivores, a relatively diverse and culturally and economically important taxonomic group of mammals that has not been studied in as much detail as the large herbivores I worked on previously.

So far I have published more than 60 publications in peer-reviewed journals, and several contributions such as book chapters or reports. My aim is to conduct high quality, innovative and internationally recognized research through a multi-disciplinary approach involving statistics, remote sensing and programming. Over the last years I have been increasingly involved with understanding the impacts of environmental change on biodiversity level and distribution, combining my experience in spatial analysis, remote sensing data and modelling. My extensive experience of NDVI and its usefulness in ecology also drove my recent interest in promoting a better integration of satellite-based data in global monitoring programs, as the information encapsulated in such indices can provide valuable and needed information to wildlife managers and policy makers. I have therefore been increasingly involved in developing projects and producing literature at the interface between science and environmental policy.
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Editorial Board:

Journal of Applied Ecology
Animal Conservation
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Students:

I currently supervise 8 PhD students , and was involved in the supervision of several Bsc and Master students.
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NEWS:

I am working on my first book "en solo", entitled "The Normalised Difference Vegetation Index: principles & ecological applications". I hope to get it in press later this year

Have a look at the Virtual Issue I edited for Journal of Applied Ecology here

I was interviewed by New Scientist and Earthzine - on climate change, protected areas and remote sensing. I have also edited a virtual issue on protected areas for Animal Conservation

I was interviewed by TopUniversities and the Huffington Post on how to get women to stay in STEM careers

Our book is nearly there - should be out this year

Our recent article on mangrove degradation was covered by the Guardian

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Recent Publications :

Ameca y Juarez, E.I., Mace, G.M., Cowlishaw, G. & Pettorelli, N. (2013) Identifying species characteristics shaping natural population die-offs in terrestrial mammals. Animal Conservation, in press

Pereira,H.M., Ferrier, S., Walters, M., Geller, G.N., Jongman, R.H.G., Scholes, R.J., Bruford, M.W., Brummitt, N., Butchart, S.H.M., Cardoso, A.C., Coops, N.C., Dulloo, E., Faith, D.P., Freyhof, J., Gregory, R.D., Heip, C., Höft, R., Hurtt, G., Jetz, W., Karp, D., McGeoch, M.A., Obura, D., Onoda, Y., Pettorelli, N., Reyers, B., Sayre, R., Scharlemann, J.P.W., Stuart, S.N., Turak, E., Walpole, M. & Wegmann, M. (2013) Essential Biodiversity Variables. Science 339: 277.

Cornforth, W., Fatoyinbo, T., Freemantle, T.P. & Pettorelli, N. (2012) ALOS PALSAR to inform the conservation of mangroves: Sundarbans as a case study. Remote Sensing 5: 224-237.

Freemantle, T.P., Wacher, T., Newby, J. & Pettorelli, N. (2013) Earth Observation: overlooked potential to support species reintroduction programmes. African Journal of Ecology, in press

Duncan, C., Chauvenet, A.L.M., McRae, L. & Pettorelli, N. (2012) Quantifying the future impact of droughts on ungulate populations in arid and semi-arid environments. PLoS ONE 7(12): e51490 .

Ameca y Juarez, E.I., Mace, G.M., Cowlishaw, G., Cornforth, W. & Pettorelli, N. (2012) Assessing exposure to extreme climatic events for terrestrial mammals. Conservation Letters, in press

English AK, Chauvenet ALM, Safi K, Pettorelli N (2012) Reassessing the Determinants of Breeding Synchrony in Ungulates. PLoS ONE 7(7): e41444. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0041444 .

Durant, S.M., Pettorelli, N., et al. (2012) Forgotten biodiversity in desert ecosystems. Science , 336: 1379-1380.

Pettorelli, N. (2012) Climate change as a main driver of ecological research. Journal of Applied Ecology, 49: 542-545.

Chauvenet, A., Durant, S., Hilborn, R. & Pettorelli, N. (2011) Unintended consequences of conservation actions: managing disease in complex ecosystems. PLoS ONE, 6(12): e28671. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0028671

Ameca y Juarez, E.I., Mace, G., Cowlishaw, G. & Pettorelli, N. (2011) Natural population die-offs: causes and consequences for terrestrial mammals. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 27: 272-277.

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Principal Collaborators:

• Jean-Michel Gaillard , Unité Mixte de Recherche N° 5558 "Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive", Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 43 Boulevard du 11 Novembre 1918, 69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France. gaillard@biomserv.univ-lyon1.fr.
• Atle Mysterud , Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biology, University of Oslo, P.O. Box 1066 Blindern, N-0316 Oslo, Norway. atle.mysterud@bio.uio.no.
• Sarah Durant , The Zoological Society of London, Institute of Zoology, Regent’s Park, London. s.durant@ucl.ac.uk.
• Charles Foley, Tanzanian Wildlife Research Institute, Arusha, Tanzania.
• Jakob Brø-Jorgensen, Mammalian Behaviour & Evolution Group, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Neston CH64 7TE.
• John Ewen , Institute of Zoology, ZSL
• Kamran Safi , Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Radolfzell, Germany
• Ioan Fazey , University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 9AL, Fife, U.K.