Erin G. Wessling

Erin G. Wessling

Postdoctoral Fellow

Harvard University

Biography

Erin Wessling is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University and is currently serving as the Regional Coordinator for the Regional Action Plan for the Conservation of the Western Chimpanzee.

As a broadly trained primate behavioral ecologist, she is interested in the intersection of ecology, biogeography, physiology, and (human) evolution. Her expertise lies in endocrinology, stable isotopes, and ecological and survey methods. She is an experienced practitioner and advocate for the integration and application of scientific evidence into conservation policy and action.

Interests

  • Primate Ecology
  • Human Evolution
  • Conservation

Education

  • PhD in Biology, 2018

    Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology / University of Leipzig

  • M.A. in Anthropology, 2011

    Iowa State University

  • Certificate in GIS, 2011

    Iowa State University

  • B.Sc. in Animal Ecology, 2009

    Iowa State University

Current Appointments

 
 
 
 
 

Regional Coordinator

IUCN PSG SGA Western Chimpanzee Regional Action Plan

Jul 2020 – Present
 
 
 
 
 

Postdoctoral Fellow

Harvard University

Jun 2019 – Present Cambridge, USA

Recent Publications

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(2020). Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus) density and environmental gradients at their biogeographical range edge. BioRxiv.

PDF DOI BioRxiv

(2020). Regional action plan for the conservation of western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) 2020–2030. International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

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(2020). Predicting range shifts of African apes under global change scenarios. BioRxiv.

PDF DOI BioRxiv

(2020). Chimpanzee ethnography reveals unexpected cultural diversity. Nature Human Behaviour.

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(2020). Late Quaternary habitat suitability models for chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) since the Last Interglacial (120,000 BP). BioRxiv.

PDF DOI BioRxiv

(2019). Geographically structured genomic diversity of non-human primate-infecting Treponema pallidum subsp. Pertenue.. BioRxiv.

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(2019). Cytomegalovirus distribution and evolution in hominines. Virus Evolutionr.

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(2019). Advancing conservation planning for western chimpanzees using IUCN SSC A.P.E.S.—the case of a taxon-specific database. Environmental Research Letters.

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(2019). Human impact erodes chimpanzee behavioral diversity. Science.

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(2019). Characteristics of Positive Deviants in Western Chimpanzee Populations. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.

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