Alice Baniel
My research lies at the interface of behavioral ecology, microbiology and evolutionary anthropology. I am interested in how the social environment, both in early life and in adulthood, affects the development, health and selective value of individuals in non-human primates. I address these questions using observational and experimental data from longitudinal individual-centered studies in natural populations, as well as high-throughput sequencing techniques in microbiology to study the microbial mechanisms underlying the relationship between sociality and selective value in social species.
Since 2023, I have been co-directing the Mandrillus project, a long-term field site studying a natural population of mandrills(Mandrillus sphinx) in the Lékédi park in southern Gabon. I'm currently interested in how host microbiota relates to the intensity of parasitism, immunity and individual longevity in mandrills.
My previous research has focused on intra- and inter-sexual conflict in relation to reproduction in chacma baboons(Papio ursinus) living in the Namib Desert, as well as the influence of maternal environment in early life on gut microbiota establishment and phenotypic development in Ethiopian geladas(Theropithecus gelada).
To find out more about my research, here's my google scholar page and my twitter account (@AliceBaniel).
The Mandrillus Project
Sex appeal, the scandalous life of nature