Ian Colquhoun

I am a broadly-trained biological anthropologist with a specialization in primatology.  My research interests encompass primate, and mammalian, socioecology.  I am interested in all aspects of primate ecology and behaviour; my field research has centred on northern Madagascar.  I am particularly focused on the study of ethnoprimatology -- that is, the study of the multi-faceted interactions between human populations and adjacent nonhuman primate populations in countries where nonhuman primates are endemic.  I am also keenly interested in all aspects of conservation biology, particularly in regards to the lemurs of Madagascar (I am a member of the Madagascar section of the Primate Specialist Group of the International Union for Conservation of Nature Species Survival Commission – IUCN/SSC). Because of the material I cover in my teaching duties, paleoanthropology is another topic area which I follow closely; I also regularly serve as an advisor and thesis committee member to graduate students in the Department’s Archaeology and Bioarchaeology stream.  Outside the Department, I am affiliated with both Western’s inter-faculty Collaborative Graduate Program in Environment and Sustainability, and The Africa Institute.

2016  Sato, Hk., Santini, L., E.R., Campera, M., Yamashita, N,. Colquhoun, I.C,. and Donati, G. Dietary Flexibility and Feeding Strategies of Eulemur: A Comparison with Propithecus. International Journal of Primatology 37(1)L 109-129 (Special Issue: New Research Directions in the Genus Eulemur - Guest Editors: G. Donati and S. Johnson).

2015 Community-managed conservation efforts at Tsingy Mahaloka/KOFAMA, northern Madagascar: Right place at the wrong time?  Madagascar Conservation & Development 10, S1: 35-41 – Special Issue on Community-based biodiversity conservation, Guest Editors: Ian C. Colquhoun [Western University, Canada], Josia Razafindramanana [GERP, Madagascar], Lena M. Reibelt [University of Hildesheim, Germany], Julia Nowack [University of New England, Australia].

2014 Schwitzer, C., Mittermeier, R. A., Johnson, S. E., Donati, G., Irwin,  M., Peacock, H., Ratsimbazafy, J., Razafindramanana, J., Louis, E. E., Chikhi, L., Colquhoun, I. C., Tinsman, J., Dolch, R., LaFleur, M., Nash, S., Patel, E., Randrianambinina, B., Rasolofoharivelo, T., and Wright, P. C.  Averting Lemur Extinctions amid Madagascar’s Political Crisis.  Science 343 (6173): 842-843.

2011 A Review and Interspecific Comparison of Nocturnal and Cathemeral Strepsirhine Primate Olfactory Behavioural Ecology.  International Journal of Zoology – Focus Issue: Behavioural Ecology; Volume 2011, Article ID 362976, doi: 10.1155/2011/362976.

2007 Anti-predator Strategies of Cathemeral Primates: Dealing with Predators of the Day and the Night.  In: Primate Anti-Predator Strategies, Sharon Gursky and Anna Nekaris (eds.).  Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects, Series Editor, Russell Tuttle. New York: Springer; pp. 144-170.

2006 Predation and Cathemerality: Comparing the Impact of Predators on the Activity Patterns of Lemurids and Ceboids. Folia Primatologica 77 (1-2): 143-165 (Special Issue on Cathemerality – Guest Editors: D. Curtis, G. Donati, and M. Rasmussen).

2005 Primates in the Forest: Sakalava Ethnoprimatology and Synecological Relations with Black Lemurs at Ambato Massif, Madagascar.  In: Commensalism and Conflict: The human - primate interface, James D. Paterson and Janette Wallis (eds.). Special Topics in Primatology, Volume 4 -- Series Editor, J. Wallis.  Norman, Oklahoma: American Society of Primatologists; pp. 90-117.

2003 Birkinshaw, C. and Colquhoun, I.C.  Lemur Food Plants.  In: The Natural History of Madagascar, Steven Goodman and Jonathan Benstead (eds.).  Chicago: University of Chicago Press; pp. 1207-1220.

1998 Cathemeral Behavior of Eulemur macaco macaco at Ambato Massif, Madagascar; Folia Primatologica 69 (Supplement 1): 22-34 (Special Issue on Biology and Conservation of Prosimians -- Guest Editors: C.S. Harcourt, R.H. Crompton and A.T.C. Feistner).

1998 Birkinshaw, C. and Colquhoun, I.C.  Pollination of Ravenala madagascariensis and Parkia madagascariensis by Eulemur macaco in Madagascar. Folia Primatologica 69(5): 252-259

2018 Mercado Malabet, F. and Colquhoun, I.C. “Realized Habitat Choices of Crowned Lemurs (Eulemur coronatus) in a Heavily Disturbed Forest Fragment: A Case Study of Flexible Distribution Patterns”. Poster contributed to session on “Primate Ecology and Conservation” (Dr. Rachel A. Voyt, Chair) at the 87th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, Austin, Texas, Apr. 10-14.

2017 Mercado Malabet, F. and Colquhoun, I.C. “Habitat choice patterns in crowned lemurs (Eulemur coronatus) reflect spatially flexible responses to anthropogenic disturbance and poor ecological quality. Paper presented at the 45th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Edmonton, Alberta, Oct. 25-28.

2016 Mercado Malabet, F. and Colquhoun, I.C. “Validating the use of canopy cover as a proxy predictor of human disturbance across forest habitats in northern Madagascar.” Poster presented at the 44th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Peterborough, Ontario, Oct. 26-29.

2015 Gilhooly, L.G., Colquhoun, I.C., and Trick, C. “The Effects of Tourists on the Behaviour and Parasite Load of Long-tailed Macaques in Sabah, Malaysia. Poster presented at the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Oct. 28-31.

2014 Presented a poster version Schwitzer et al. (2014), “Averting Lemur Extinctions among Madagascar’s Political Crisis” (on which I was a co-author -- see p. 2 above), at the 1st Fallona Interdisciplinary Science Showcase -- "Shaping Scientific Solutions @ Western Interdisciplinary Communities"; Faculty of Science, University of Western Ontario, Dec. 2.

2014 Freed, B., Banks, M., and Colquhoun, I.C., “Eulemur in Sympatry” – paper presented in the symposium “The ‘Little Brown Lemurs’ Grow Up: New Research Directions in the Genus Eulemur”, organized by Dr. Giuseppe Donati and Dr. Steig Johnson and held at the XXVth Congress of the International Primatological Society, Hanoi, Vietnam, August 11-16.

2014 Schwitzer, C., Colquhoun, I.C., Donati, G., and Johnson, S.E. “Current Issues in the Conservation of Eulemur” – paper presented in the symposium “The ‘Little Brown Lemurs’ Grow Up: New Research Directions in the Genus Eulemur”, organized by Dr. Giuseppe Donati and Dr. Steig Johnson and held at the XXVth Congress of the International Primatological Society, Hanoi, Vietnam, August 11-16.

2014 Colquhoun, I.C. and Walsh, A. “Community-Managed Conservation at KOFAMA in Northern Madagascar: Local successes and challenges for the future” – paper presented in the symposium “The Lemur Crisis: Navigating the Complexities of Conservation in Madagascar”, organized by Dr. Marni LaFleur, Dr. Lisa Gould, Dr. Erik Patel, and Jen Tinsman, and held at the XXVth Congress of the International Primatological Society, Hanoi, Vietnam, Aug. 11-16.

2013 Invited Chair of session on “Living and fossil non-human primates”, at the 41st Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Toronto, Ontario, Oct. 17-20. Paper presented: “A New Action Plan for Lemur Conservation (2013-2016): Key Aspects and Priorities Moving Forward.”

2013 “KOFAMA: A Community-Managed Conservation Area in Northern Madagascar.” Paper presentation in session on “Policy, economy and actions on prosimian conservation” at the International Prosimian Congress 2013, Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar, Aug. 5-9.

2012 “The Ongoing Crisis of Lemur Conservation in Madagascar: A Review of Recent Developments.” Paper presentation in session on “Primatology” (Dr. Pascale Sicotte and Dr. Lisa Gould, Co-Chairs) at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Victoria, British Columbia, November 7-10.

2012 “How I Use the All the World’s Primates Database in My Classroom.” Invited presentation made to workshop on “New Directions in Primate Information – About All the World’s Primates (AWP)”, held at the XXIV Congress of the International Primatological Society, Cancun, Mexico, August 12-17.

2011 Invited Chair of session on "Primatology and Conservation", at the 39th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Montreal, Quebec, October 26-29. Paper presented: “What if no tourists come? Challenges to ecotourism for a community-managed conservation area in northern Madagascar.”

2010 “Establishing the Southwestern Limits in the Geographic Distributions of Eulemur coronatus and E. sanfordi.” Paper presented in session on “Primatology” (Dr. Michael Schillaci, Chair), at the 38th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology (CAPA-ACAP), Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, October 27-30.

2010 “Voices from Ankarana: Collaborative Research on Conservation and Development in Northern Madagascar” (with Alex Totomarovario, U.d‘Antsiranana; Andrew Walsh, U. of Western Ontario; Laurent Berger, Musee Quai Branly; Benjamin Freed, Eastern Kentucky U.; and Lisa Gezon, U. of West Georgia). Presentation (made on our behalf by Barry Ferguson, U. of East Anglia) at the “Voice’s from Madagascar’s Forests: Improving Representation and Rights of Malagasy Forest Peoples” conference, School of International Development, U. of East Anglia, Norwich, UK, June 5-6.

My undergraduate teaching spans a wide spectrum of topic areas, including:

• Anthropology 1026F/G (“Introduction To Biological Anthropology & Archaeology”);
• Anthropology 2226A/B (“Biological Anthropology” core second-year lab course);
• Anthropology 2264F/G (“Issues in Primate Conservation”);
• Anthropology 2265F/G (“Primate Behavior”);
• Anthropology 2267A/B (Anthropology of Zoos”);
• Anthropology 3334F/G (“Primate and Human Paleontology”);
• Anthropology 3336F/G (“Topics in Human Evolution”).

Current Graduate Students

Tamara Britton (F’17) – MA, Anthropology (Sociocultural Anthropology Program and Environment & Sustainability); thesis project: “Sharing Spaces: Human-Nonhuman Primate Naturecultures in the Pacoche Wildlife Reserve, Ecuador.”

Previous Graduate Students

Lauren Gilhooly (F’14) – Ph.D., Anthropology (Environment & Sustainability; Joint Supervisor with Dr. Charles Trick, Department of Biology, Dept. of Microbiology & Immunology); doctoral project: “Impact of tourist presence on long-tailed macaque behaviour and the implications for parasite transmission in Sabah (Borneo), Malaysia”.

Hilary Hager (F ’18) – MA, Anthropology (Archaeology and Bioarchaeology Program, and Environment & Sustainability); proposed thesis project: primate social behaviour and communication.

Heather Peacock (W’15) – Ph.D., Geography (Environment & Sustainability; Joint Supervisor with Dr. Tony Weis, Department of Geography); doctoral project: “A global GIS analysis of primate diversity and biogeography: Assessing trends in habitat loss and extinction risk to inform primate conservation biology.”

Fernando Mercado Malabet (F’15 to Sept. 2017) – MA (2017), Anthropology (Environment & Sustainability); Thesis title: “Trees for the Primates: A Community-based Assessment of Crowned Lemur (Eulemur coronatus) Habitat Preferences and Conservation in Northern Madagascar.”

Caleigh Farrell (F’11 to July 2013) – MA (2013), Anthropology (Sociocultural Anthropology Program); Thesis title: “Investigating the Role of Zoos in Primate Conservation: An Analysis of Visitor Behaviour at the Toronto Zoo”. (Co-Supervisor with Dr. Dan Jorgensen).

Bryan Wilson (F’10 to June 2012) – MA (2012), Anthropology (Environment & Sustainability); Thesis title: “Communication, Commodified Nature, and Boundaries: Ecotourism and Conservation in Northwest Madagascar”. (Co-Supervisor with Dr. Dan Jorgensen).

Shauna Solomon (F’07 to Aug. 2009) – MA (2009), Anthropology (Environment & Sustainability); Thesis title: “Living On the Edge: A Preliminary Dry Season Study of Crowned Lemur (Eulemur coronatus, Gray 1842) and Sanford’s Lemur (Eulemur sanfordi, Archbold, 1932) Response To Anthropogenic Habitat Changes in Northern Madagascar”.