Valéria Romano

Valéria Romano

CR-Research charge

POPCO

Biodiversity, Global change, Single health, Socio-ecological cohabitation

Olá! I am a field and theoretical biologist working on behavioural ecology and biodiversity conservation trough a one-health approach (i.e., recognition that human health is interconnected to animal and environmental health). My work specifically focuses on the dynamic relationships between anthropogenic pressures (such as deforestation), population dynamics, animal social interactions and the emergence and spread of infectious diseases. I apply a vast range of methods, including field experiments and advanced mathematical modelling (e.g., network analysis, individual-based modelling, landscape analysis).

  • 12/2022 - present - Research Fellow - IRD - IMBE
  • 01/2022 – 11/2022 - IRD Postdoctoral fellow - IRD - IMBE
  • 02/2019 – 12/2021 - Postdoctoral researcher - IPHES and University of Alicante, Spain
  • 11/2017 – 02/2019 - JSPS Postdoctoral fellow - Kyoto University, Japan
  • 2017 - PhD in Ecology and Animal Behaviour - University of Strasbourg, France
  • 2013 - Master in Ecology and Natural Resources - Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense (UENF), Brazil
  • 2011 - Bachelor in Biology - Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense (UENF), Brazil
Current PhD students: Romain Monassier (2024 - present, Aix-Marseille University) / Déa da Mota (2023 - present, UFRJ - Brazil) / Maxime Pierron (2022 - present, Strasbourg University)
  • Behavioural ecology
  • Social networks
  • Complex systems
  • Animal conservation
  • Primatology

Broadly, my ongoing projects focus on the socio-ecological drivers of behavioral flexibility, population dynamics and pathogen transmission in fragmented forests in the tropics. This includes: (i) the influence of habitat fragmentation and loss on animal population dynamics, (ii) the vulnerability of neotropical primates to disease outbreaks (e.g., yellow fever); iii) the influence of sociality on pathogen transmission and iv) the design of conservation and management plans for wildlife.