Leibniz-IZW-Seminars

The Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research regularly organizes scientific seminars on various topics, in which invited speakers or IZW scientists present their work in the form of a lecture. The free lectures take place in the lecture hall of the IZW and are also broadcast live via video.
Interested persons are cordially invited to attend the Leibniz-IZW-Seminars in person or online. You are welcome to sign up for our newsletter at izwseminar@izw-berlin.de. The lectures will be held mostly in English.

Upcoming events

12th November 2026, 1 p.m.
Nikolaos Smit (University of Turku, Department of Biology, Turku, Finland)
Infant presence and mother-infant conflict predict fetal loss in wild mandrills
Fitness is shaped by the pace of reproduction and the trade-offs in parental investment allocated between current and future offspring. Using a comprehensive 11-year longitudinal dataset comprising 362 pregnancies from 117 wild female mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx), we investigated how reproductive strategies influence maternal investment decisions and their consequences for both current and future reproductive outcomes. Our findings reveal that when females shift investment away from current infant care to prioritize a new gestation, they face elevated mother-infant behavioral conflict. This conflict significantly increases the likelihood of fetal loss, thereby reducing short-term reproductive success. The mother-infant conflict appears to act as a physiological or behavioral barrier to efficiently reallocating maternal resources toward the developing fetus. Alternatively, it may trigger a strategic termination of pregnancy, serving as an adaptive response to mitigate the fitness costs associated with short inter-birth intervals, such as the risk of losing a dependent infant. Notably, females who experienced fetal loss subsequently demonstrated higher long-term reproductive success compared to those who carried an infant to term but whose offspring died at a young age. These results uncover a previously hidden adaptive mechanism that appears to regulate the timing of female reproduction in a way that maximizes lifetime fitness. I will talk about this one article - scheduled to be published on November 3rd.

18th November 2026, 1 p.m.
Marlène Gamelon (French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS))
Title & Abstract follows

16th December 2026, 1 p.m.
Prof. Maria-Jesús Sánchez Calabuig (Complutense University of Madrid)
Title & Abstract follows

Contact
Organization
Constanze Wiechert
Tel: +49(0) 30 5168-336
E-Mail: wiechert@izw-berlin.de, izwseminar@izw-berlin.de

Technical support
Dorina Meneghini
Tel. +49(0)30 5168-340
E-Mail: meneghini@izw-berlin.de

Christine Reusch
Tel. +49(0)30 5168-123
E-Mail: reusch@izw-berlin.de

Accounting
Stefanie Lenz
Tel: +49(0)30 5168-459
E-Mail: lenz@izw-berlin.de


Last Update: 28th October 2026