Research Interest

   My research focuses on acoustic communication in Vertebrates within a comparative framework. I'm especially interested in cognitive and neurophysiological mechanisms of sound signals perception and on the impact of social and environmental constraints on the evolution of acoustic communications. My favourite models are songbirds, seabirds, marine mammals and crocodiles. A strong link between field research on wild animals and lab investigations on neuro-ethological processes is my priority.

Current Projects & Grants

- Birds’ voices: multi-levels integration of neuronal signals during vocal recognition in a songbird communication network. French National Research Agency (ANR).

- Audition and brain activation in bird and crocodile: an ethological and fMRI approach. French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

- Acoustic communication in Walrus (project supervised by Isabelle Charrier). French Polar Institute.


Collaborations

- Pr. Malu Da Silva (Universidad do Para, Belem, Brazil)
- Dr. Catherine del Negro (Paris XI University, France)
- Pr. Johan Bolhuis (Utrecht University, Holland)
- Dr. Martine Hausberger (Rennes University, France)
- Dr. Stéphane Mottin (Laboratoire Hubert Curien, Jean Monnet University, Saint-Etienne, France)
- Pr. Michael Pritz (Indiana University, USA)
- Pr. Frederic Theunissen (Psychology Dpt, University of California, Berkeley, USA)
- Pr. Annemie Van Der Linden (BioImaging Laboratory (Antwerp University, Belgium)
- Pr. Jacques Vielliard (Campinas University, Brazil)


Teaching

Behavioural Biology


Some Selected Publications

Vergne A., Mathevon N. In press. Crocodile egg sounds signal hatching time. Current Biology.

Curé C., Aubin T., Mathevon N. In press. Acoustic convergence and divergence in two sympatric burrowing nocturnal seabirds. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.

Mathevon N., Aubin T., Vielliard J., Da Silva ML., Sebe F., Boscolo D. 2008. Singing in the rain forest: How a tropical bird song transfers information. PloS ONE, 3(2):e1580.

Vignal C., Mathevon N., Mottin S. 2004. Audience drives male songbird response to partner’s voice. Nature, 430:448-451.

Charrier I., Mathevon N., Jouventin P. 2001. Mother’s voice recognition by seal pups. Nature, 412: 873.