Dr Jakob Bro-Jørgensen

Curriculum Vitae:

• 2006-2008: Research Fellow, Institute of Zoology, ZSL.
• 2004-2006: Marie Curie Research Fellow, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
• 2003-2004: Programme Manager, Bushmeat & Forest Conservation Programme, ZSL.
• 2002-2003: Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Stirling, United Kingdom.
• 1997-2001: PhD Zoology, University of London.
• 1995-1997: MSc Biology, University of Copenhagen.
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Research Interests:

My research interests centre on (1) sexual selection and sexual conflict and (2) the behavioural ecology and conservation of ungulates.

A main focus of my work is the evolution of mating strategies: Which factors decide whether the reproductive interests of the sexes coincide or diverge? If there is conflict, who gets the upper hand? What are the causes and consequences of multiple mating? I approach questions like these from theoretical as well as empirical angles.

My main study system is the topi antelopes of the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Topi cows who are ready to mate deliberately visit arenas of small, clustered male territories, so-called leks. Because mating activity is clustered in time and space, the system is well-suited for studying patterns in mate choice and competition.

Other projects include acoustic communication in antelopes, viability of ungulate populations in fragmented landscapes, and comparative studies of artiodactyl evolution.
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Affiliations:

IUCN Antelope Specialist Group, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), Association of the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB), and Centre for Ecology and Evolution (CEE).
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Publications:

Stockley P, Bro-Jørgensen J (2010) The role of female competition in the sexual selection of mammals. Biological Reviews (DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-185X.2010.00149.x; published online 15 July)

Bro-Jørgensen J, Pangle W (2010) Male topi antelopes alarm snort deceptively to retain females for mating. American Naturalist 176: E33-39.

Bro-Jørgensen J (2010) Dynamics of multiple signalling systems: animal communication in a world in flux. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 25: 292-300.

Pettorelli N, Bro-Jørgensen J, Durant SM, Blackburn TM, Carbone C (2009) Energy availability and density estimates in African ungulates. American Naturalist 173: 698-704.

Bro-Jørgensen J, Dabelsteen T (2008) Knee-clicks and visual traits indicate fighting ability in eland antelopes: multiple messages and back-up signals. BMC Biology 6: article 47.

Bro-Jørgensen J, Brown ME, Pettorelli N (2008) Using the satellite-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to explain ranging patterns in a lek-breeding antelope: the importance of scale. Oecologia 158: 177–182.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2008) The impact of lekking on the spatial variation in payoffs to resource-defending topi bulls, Damaliscus lunatus. Animal Behaviour 75: 1229-1234.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2008) Dense habitats selecting for small body size: a comparative study on bovids. Oikos 117: 729-737.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2007) Reversed sexual conflict in a promiscuous antelope. Current Biology 17: 2157-2161.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2007) The intensity of sexual selection predicts weapon size in male bovids. Evolution 61: 1316-1326.

Bro-Jørgensen, J., Johnstone, R.A. and Evans, M.R. (2007) Uninformative exaggeration of male sexual ornaments in the barn swallow. Current Biology 17: 850-855.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2003) The significance of hotspots to lekking topi antelopes (Damaliscus lunatus). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 53: 324-331.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2003) No peace for estrous topi cows on leks. Behavioral Ecology 14: 521-525.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. and Durant, S.M. (2003) Mating strategies of topi bulls: getting in the centre of attention. Animal Behaviour 65: 585-594.

Bro-Jørgensen, J. (2002) Overt female mate competition and preference for central males in a lekking antelope. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA 99: 9290-9293.