ICTE Webpage, Profile of Sharon T. Pochron

Profiles

Study Sites

Research Subjects

Researcher

View Our Publication List

ICTE
N-543 SBS Bldg.
SUNY at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY
11794-4364
631.632.9440
Fax: 631.632.7692
Email Us

Sharon T. Pochron

Education:

Franklin and Marshall College, 1989 (BA: Biology and Anthropology)
University of New Mexico, 1992 (MA: Anthropology, minor Biology)
University of New Mexico, 1999 (Ph.D. Anthropology)

Current Position:

Adjunct Professor

Email:

spochron@ms.cc.sunysb.edu

Research Sites:

Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar
Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

Research Project:

The Ranomafana Propithecus Project

Research Focus:

My current research involves the Milne-Edwards’ sifaka (Propithecus diadema edwardsi), an endangered rainforest lemur from Madagascar. Lemurs exhibit traits considered “puzzling” by behavioral ecologists. These include: female dominance over males, targeted female-female aggression, lack of sexual dimorphism regardless of mating system, an infant mortality rate double that of anthropoids, and a male-biased sex ratio. Some lemurs, including the Milne-Edwards sifaka, exhibit additional puzzling traits. My study species, for example, uses four mating systems (polyandry, harem, multi-male/multi-female, and pairs) with equal frequency, and can switch from one mating system to another with no repercussions to infant survival. Also, both males and females are equally likely to migrate at any age after reaching adulthood. No other primate. and few other mammals, share these traits.

My research focuses on quantifying these characteristics and placing them into a behavioral-ecology framework. Because lemurs differ dramatically from anthropoids, the answer to one question leads to another. My current work, for instance, shows that the flexibility seen in mating systems is likely an artifact of small group size, begging the question: why are sifaka groups the size that they are? I have also shown that by decoupling body weight from testicle size in the breeding season, large males do not have an advantage over small males in a sperm-competition setting. This begs the question: is the cyclone-ridden, fruit-species-poor environment of Madagascar limiting maximum body size for this species? My goal is to pull all of the puzzling lemur traits together into one cohesive story using a behavioral-ecology framework.

Publications:

King SJ, Arrigo-Nelson SJ, Pochron ST, Semprebon GM, Godfrey LR, Wright PC, Jernvall J. (2005) Dental senescence in a long-lived primate links infant survival to rainfall. Proceedings of the National Academies of Science 102:16579-16583.

Pochron ST, Morelli TL, Terranova P, Scirbona J, Wright PC. (2005) Sex differences in scent marking in Propithecus edwardsi of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Primatology. 66:97-110.

Wright PC, Razafindratsita T, Pochron ST, Jernvall J. (2005) The key to Madagascar frugivores. In: Tropical Fruits and Frugivores: The Search for Strong Interactors, (Dew JL, Boubli H. eds.). New York, NY, Springer.

Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2005) Dance of the sexes: a lemur needs some unusual traits to survive in Madagascar's unpredictable environment. Natural History. 6:34-39.

Pochron ST, Morelli TL, Terranova P, Scirbona J, Cohen J, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R, Wright PC. (2005) Patterns of male scent marking in Propithecus edwardsi of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Primatology. 65:103-115.

Pochron ST. (2005) Does relative economic value of food elicit purposeful encounter in the yellow baboons (Papio hamadryas cynocephalus) of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania? Primates. 46:71-74.

Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2005) Testes size and body weight in the Milne-Edwards' sifaka of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar, relative to other strepsirhine primates. Folia Primatologica. 76:37-41.

Pochron ST, Tucker WT, Wright PC. (2004) Demography, life history and social structure in Propithecus diadema edwardsi from 1986 to 2000 of Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 125:61-72.

Pochron ST, Fitzgerald J, Gilbert CC, Lawrence DM, Grgas M, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R, Wright PC. (2003) Patterns of female dominance in (Propithecus diadema edwardsi) of Ranomafana National Park. American Journal of Primatology. 61:173-185.

Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2003) Variability in adult group compositions of a prosimian primate. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 54:285-293.

Wright PC, Pochron ST, Haring D, Simons E. (2003) Can we predict seasonal behavior and social organization from sexual dimorphism and testes measurements? In: The Tarsiers: Past, Present and Future, (Wright PC, Simons EL, Gursky S. eds.) Rutgers NJ, Rutgers University Press. pp. 260-275.

Pochron ST, Wright PC. (2002) Dynamics of testes size compensates for variation in male body-size. Evolutionary Ecology Research. 4:1-9.

Pochron ST, Wright PC, Schaentzler E, Ippolito M, Rakotonirina G, Ratsimbazafy R, Rakotosoa R. (2002) Effect of season and age on the gonadosomatic index of Milne-Edward's sifakas (Propithecus diadema edwardsi) in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. International Journal of Primatology. 23(2):355-364.

Pochron ST. (2001) Can concurrent speed and directness of travel indicate locational knowledge in the free-ranging yellow baboons (Papio h. cynocephalus) of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania? International Journal of Primatology. 22(5):773-785.

Pochron ST. (2000) Sun avoidance behavior in yellow baboons of Ruaha National Park, Tanzania: variations with season, behavior and weather. International Journal of Biometeorology. 44(3):141-147.

Pochron ST. (2000) The core dry-season diet of yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus cynocephalus) in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Folia Primatologica. 71(5):346-349.

Pochron ST. (1999) Tests of Food Selection Models—Yellow Baboons (Papio cynocephalus cynocephalus), Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. Ph.D. Dissertation from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.

N-543 SBS Bldg, SUNY at Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY 11794-4364
631.632.9440 Fax: 631.632.7692