Cyril Delfosse
Doctoral student
Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
Deutscher Platz 6
04103 Leipzig
e-mail:
cyril_delfosse@[>>> Please remove the text! <<<]eva.mpg.de
Research interests
After completing a first PhD in 2017 on methods for assessing and controlling stress in farmed salmonids, I am now pursuing a second PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, aligned with my shift in research interests toward primatology and cultural evolution.
My research focuses on cultural evolution in chimpanzees, with particular emphasis on behavioural flexibility, innovation, and social learning. I investigate chimpanzees’ capacity to innovate and socially transmit behaviours through two complementary approaches. First, I study naturally occurring cultural behaviours such as nut-cracking and termite fishing to examine how these behaviours emerge and are maintained within groups. Second, I use experimental puzzle-box paradigms to assess problem-solving abilities, innovation, and re-innovation when conditions change. These experiments allow me to evaluate how chimpanzees adapt their strategies and socially transmit novel solutions.
Together, this work aims to better understand the mechanisms underlying innovation, behavioural flexibility, and cultural evolution in chimpanzees.
Curriculum Vitae
Major professional experiences
| Since January 2026 | PhD student in CCP Department at MPI EVA, Leipzig |
| Sep 2024 – Dec 2025 | Research assistant/Postdoctoral researcher – Utrecht Univ., Netherlands |
| Nov 2021 – Feb 2022 | Research and Education Consultant - Limbe Wildlife Centre, Cameroon |
| Sep 2020 – Apr 2021 | Animal Welfare Project Officer – WELFARM, France |
| Feb 2019 – Jun 2020 | Research and Education Consultant - Limbe Wildlife Centre, Cameroon |
| Apr 2011 – Sep 2017 | PhD Student – Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA/IRSEA-ARC), France/Norway |
Education
| 2017 | PhD in Biology University of Toulouse |
| 2012 | MSc in Functional, Behavioural and Evolutionary Ecology University of Rennes |
| 2010 | BSc in Biology of Organisms and Populations University of Lille |
Languages
- French (mother tongue)
- English (B2)
Publications
Delfosse C, Bienboire-Frosini C, Chabaud C, Lafont-Lecuelle C, Cozzi A, Pageat P. 2016. Using physiological and zootechnical profiles to evaluate welfare in farmed rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum) under stressful conditions. Aquaculture International, 24(5), 1449-1457.
Delfosse C, Lafont-Lecuelle C, Barthélémy H, Chabaud C, Teruel E, Bienboire-Frosini C, Pageat P. 2018. Study of the hooking behaviour of Lepeophtheirus salmonis (Krøyer, 1837) copepodids on Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar L., using a novel in vivo test system. Journal of Fish Diseases, 41(6), 969-972.
Delfosse C, Pageat P, Lafont-Lecuelle C, Asproni A, Chabaud C, Cozzi A, Bienboire-Frosini C. 2021. Effect of handling and crowding on the susceptibility of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) to Lepeophtheirus salmonis (Krøyer) copepodids. Journal of Fish Diseases, 44(3), 327-336.
