Curriculum Vitae
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
- 2011- Senior Scientist Dpt. Animal Ecology (NIOO-KNAW)
- 2009-2011 Research Scientist Dpt. Animal Ecology (NIOO-KNAW)
- 2006-2009 VENI Research Associate Dpt. Animal Population Biology, NIOO-KNAW
- 2004-2005 Postdoc - Max-Planck Institute for Ornithology (Seewiesen, Germany)
- 2003-2004 Postdoc - Dept. Animal Population Biology, NIOO-KNAW
- 1998-2003 PhD student on the quantitative genetic background of personalities in Great Tits (NIOO-KNAW, University of Utrecht)
- 1996 MSc in Animal Ecology at University of Groningen
- 1994 BSc in Ecology at Utrecht University
Editorial tasks
Consulting editor for Animal Behaviour
Editor for ARDEA
Expertise
Animal Personality
- Proximate (genetics, physiology) and ultimate (natural and sexual selection) aspects explaining variation in personality
- Conceptual issues and the link to human personality
Evolutionary Genetics, Ecological Genomics of Behavioural- and Life-History Traits
Quantitative and molecular genetics of behaviour in natural- and controlled lab populations
Projects
A. Evolutionary genetics of avian personality
This project aims to analyse the quantitative and molecular genetic basis of avian personalities and using this to study genotype x environment interaction. The final goal is to link this to natural and artificial selection. It is based on lines for fast and slow exploration and lines selected on low and high risk-taking behaviour, but also uses long-term data from phenotyped pedigreed wild populations.
B. Physiological mechanisms underlying personality variation in great tits
Personality differences are expressed in situations of mild stress. The physiological mechanisms underlying these stress responses are therefore expected to vary along this variation. In rodents proactive coping styles (bold, “active” and aggressive animals) are associated with high neurosympathetic activity and low HPA reactivity, whereas reactive coping styles (shy, “passive” and less aggressive animals) are associated with high cardiac parasympathetic activity and high HPA reactivity. Measuring these physiological differences in relation to personality differences will give us direct information on the mechanisms underlying personality differences.
C. Frequency dependend fitness consequences of personality in a natural population
This is a PhD project run by Eva Fucikova and supervised by Dr. Piet Drent and Dr. Kees van Oers
Promotor: Prof Dr. Marcel Visser
Eva graduated January 7 2011
you can find her thesis HERE
Co-Operation
Animal Personality: Causes and consequences of personality in the great tit
With: Prof. Dr. Marc Naguib (Behavioural Ecology chair Group - WUR)
Songbird Genomics: High throughput genetics and QTL mapping in a wild passerine
With: Prof. Dr. Martien Groenen (Animal Breeding and Genomics Center- WUR) and Prof. Dr. Marcel Visser (NIOO-KNAW)
postdoc: Dr. Nikkie van Bers
Physiological basis of avian personality and it's fitness consequences
with: Dr. Michaela Hau (MPIO, Radolfzell, Germany)
postdoc: Dr. Alexander Baugh
Selected Publications
Publication record
View my ResearcherID
For PDF's of my articles see my personal website
In Press
van Bers, N.E.M. Santure, A.W., van Oers, K. De Cauwer, I., Dibbits, B.W., Mateman, A.C., Crooijmans, R.P.N.A., Sheldon, B.C., Visser, M.E., Groenen, M.A.M. & Slate, J. The design and cross-population application of a genome-wide SNP chip for the great tit PArus major. Molecular Ecology Resources.
Amy, M., van Oers, K. & Naguib, M. Worms under cover: relationships between performance in learning tasks and personality in great tits (Parus major). Animal Cognition.
van Oers, K. & Sinn, D. The quantitative and molecular genetics of animal personality. In: Animal Personalities: behavior, physiology, and evolution. Edited by Claudio Carere and Dario Maestripieri. Publisher: Chicago University Press
van Oers, K. & Naguib, M. Avian Personality. In: Animal Personalities: behavior, physiology, and evolution. Edited by Claudio Carere and Dario Maestripieri. Publisher: Chicago University Press
2012
Titulaer, M., van Oers, K. & Naguib, M. Personality affects learning performance in difficult tasks in a sex-dependent way. Animal Behaviour
Baugh, A.T., Schaper, S., Hau, M., Cockrem, J.F., de Goede P. & van Oers, K. Corticosterone responses differ between lines of great tits (Parus major) selected for divergent personalities. General and Comparative Endocrinology.
Ritschard, M., van Oers, K., Naguib, M. & Brumm, H. Song amplitude of rival males modulates the territorial behaviour of great tits during the fertile period of their mates. Ethology
2011
Amo, L., Visser, M.E. & van Oers, K. Smelling out predators is innate in birds. ARDEA 99(2): 177-184
Naguib, M., Flörcke, C. & van Oers, K. Effects of social conditions during early development on stress response and personality traits in great tits (Parus major). Developmental Psychobiology 53(6):592-600
van Oers, K., Buchanan, K. L., Thomas, T. E. & Drent, P. J. Correlated response to selection of testosterone levels and immunocompetence in lines selected for avian personality. Animal Behaviour 81:1055-161
van Oers, K. & Sinn, D. Towards a basis for the phenotypic gambit: advances in the evolutionary genetics of animal personality. In: From genes to behavior. Ed.: A. Weiss, M. Inoue-Murayama, S. Kawamura amd E. Inoue. Springer, Tokyo. Pp. 165-183
2010
van Oers, K. & Mueller, J.C. Evolutionary genomics of animal personality. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. Lond. B. 365: 3991-4000
Visser, M.E., Caro, S.P., van Oers, K., Schaper, S.V. & Helm, B. Phenology, seasonal timingand circannual rhythms: towards a unified framework. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. Lond. B. 365: 3113-3127
Brommer, J. et al. Passerine extra-pair mating dynamics: a Bayesian approach comparing four species. American Naturalist. 176(2): 178-187
Beintema, A.J., van der Winden, J., Baarspul, T., de Krijger, J.P., van Oers, K., Keller, M. Black Terns Chlidonias niger and their dietary problems in Dutch wetlands. ARDEA 98:365-372
Naguib, M. Kazek, A. Schaper, S. van Oers, K., Visser, M.E. Singing activity reveals personality traits in great tits. Ethology 116(8): 763-769
Kurvers, R.H.J.M., van Oers, K., Nolet, B.A., Jonker, R., van Wieren, S.E., Prins, H.H.T. & Ydenburg, R.C. Personality predicts the use of social information. Ecology Letters 13: 829-837
Van Bers, N.E.M., van Oers, K., Kerstens, H. H. D., Dibbits, B. W., Crooijmans, R. P. M. A., Visser, M.E. & Groenen, M.A.M. Genome-wide SNP detection in the great tit Parus major using high throughput sequencing. Mol. Ecol. 19 Suppl. 1, 89-99
Korsten, P., Mueller, J.C., Hermannstädter, C., Bouwman, K.N., Dingemanse, N.J., Drent, P.J., Liedvogel, M., Matthysen, E., van Oers, K., van Overveld, T., Patrick, S.C., Quinn, J.L., Sheldon, B.C., Tinbergen, J.M. & Kempenaers, B. Association between DRD4 gene polymorphism and personality variation in great tits: a test across four wild populations. Mol. Ecol. 19: 832-843
Kurvers, R.H.J.M., Prins, H.H.T., van Wieren, S.E., van Oers, K., Nolet, B.A. & Ydenburg, R.C. The effect of personality on social foraging: shy barnacle geese scrounge more. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 277:601-608
van Oers, K., Richardson, D.S., Sæter, S.A. & Komdeur, J. Reduced blood parasite prevalence with age in the Seychelles Warbler: selective mortality or suppression of infection? J. Ornith. 151: 69-77 (free access)
2009
Kurvers, R.H.J.M., Eijkelenkamp, B., van Oers, K., van Lith, B., van Wieren, S.E., Ydenburg, R.C. & Prins, H.H.T. 2009. Personalty differences explain leadership in barnacle geese. Anim. Behav. 78:447-453
Jacot, A., Valcu, M., van Oers, K. & Kempenaers, B. 2009. Experimental nest site limitation affects reproductive strategies and parental investment in a hole-nesting passerine. Anim. Behav. 77: 1075-1083
Fucikova, E., Drent, P.J. & van Oers, K. 2009. Handling stress as a measurement of personality in Great tit nestlings (Parus major). Ethology 115: 366-374
2008
van Oers, K., Drent, P.J., Dingemanse, N.J. & Kempenaers, B. 2008. Personality is associated with extra-pair paternity in great tits (Parus major). Anim. Behav. 76: 577-584
van Oers, K. 2008. Animal Personality, Behaviours or Traits: What Are We Measuring? – invited commentary. Eur. J. Personality 22: 457-474
2007
Fidler, A.E., van Oers, K., Drent, P.J., Kuhn, S., Mueller, J.C. & Kempenaers, B. 2007. Drd4 gene polymorphisms are associated with personality variation in a passerine bird. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 274: 1685-1691
van Oers, K. & Carere, C. 2007. Long-term effects of repeated handling and bleeding in wild caught great tits Parus major. J. Ornith. 148 (Suppl 2):S185-S190.
van Oers, K. 2007. The need for interdisciplinary research in personality studies – invited commentary. Eur. J. Personality 21: 635-637
2005
van Oers, K., de Jong, G., van Noordwijk, A.J., Kempenaers, B. & Drent, P.J. 2005. Contribution of genetics to the study of animal personalities: a review of case studies. Behaviour 142: 1191-1212
van Oers, K., Klunder, M. & Drent, P.J. 2005. Context dependence of personalities: risk-taking behavior in a social and a nonsocial situation. Behav. Ecol. 16: 716-723
2004 and earlier
van Oers, K., de Jong, G. van Noordwijk, A.J. & Drent, P.J. 2004. A genetic analysis of avian personality traits: correlated response to artificial selection. Behav. Gen. 34: 611-619
van Oers, K., Drent, P., de Jong, G. & van Noordwijk, A.J. 2004. Additive and nonadditive genetic variation in avian personality traits. Heredity 93: 496-503
Carere, C. & van Oers, K. 2004. Shy and bold great tits (Parus major): body temperature and breath rate in response to handling stress. Phys. Behav. 82: 905-912
van Oers, K., Drent, P.J. de Goede, P. and van Noordwijk, A.J. 2004. Realized heritability and repeatability of risk-taking behaviour in relation to avian personalities. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 271: 65-73
Mols, C.M.M., van Oers, K., Witjes, L.M.A., Lessells, C.M., Drent, P.J. and Visser, M.E. 2004. Central assumptions of predator-prey models fail in a semi-natural experimental system. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B (Suppl.) 271: S85-S87
Drent, P.J., van Oers, K. and van Noordwijk, A.J. 2003. Realised heritability of personalities in the great tit (Parus major). Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 270: 45-51
van Oers, K., Heg, D. and Le Drean Quenech'du, S. 2002. Parasite infection and survival in the Oystercatcher. Ibis 144: 509-517
Dingemanse, N.J., Both, C. Drent, P.J. , van Oers, K. and van Noordwijk, A.J. 2002. Repeatability and heritability of exploratory behaviour in great tits. Anim. Behav. 64: 929-937
van Oers, C.H.J. and van Dijk, J. 2002. Distribution, feeding habits and behaviour ecology of the Buffon's Macaw (Ara ambigua guayaquilensis).
In: Bird Reasearch and Breeding. Pp 159-173, Ed. C.Mettke-Hofmann & U.Gansloßer
Publisher: Filander Verlag
Drent, P.J., Dingemanse, N.J. & van Oers, C.H.J. 2002
Functional significance and heritability in coping strategies in a wild territorial passerine: the great tit
In: Bird Reasearch and Breeding. Pp 25-46, Ed. C.Mettke-Hofmann & U.Gansloßer
Publisher: Filander Verlag
Links
Personal website with PDF's of publications, PR articles etc.
PhD thesis at the website of Utrecht University
Animal Personality Website of Sam Gosling's lab
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