francoislibert

3179 Observations 1329 Species 63605 Identifications 9133

Annotations 0 Journal Posts 3 Lists 106 Followers

Francois Libert Curator

Joined: Aug 26, 2022 Last Active: Oct 3, 2024 iNaturalist

I was born a naturalist!
Interested in all animal forms for as long as I can remember, I "specialized" in fishes many years ago through fishkeeping and aquarium photography, and kept a keen interest until I graduated in Systematics at the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle de Paris. After that I had to choose another career path, but although there were times when I was interested in other animal groups as well, this interest for fish was always stronger. It grew even more when I started scuba diving in 2009, allowing me to photograph them in their habitat. As a result, I also started focusing more on reef fishes, and mainly the Indo-Pacific species.

I try to collaborate with a few popular marine life sites (https://www.fishipedia.fr, https://doris.ffessm.fr, www.fishbase.org, https://www.fishwisepro.com, https://www.monaconatureencyclopedia.com) when I have time to help identifying fishes, or by sharing my photos, and post my photos on Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/zsispeo).

My photos are also used in exhibits, magazines, books, and scientific publications (my pictures of Chromis torquata were used to describe the species).
In 2019, I wrote a book with co-author Steven Weinberg, another natural born naturalist.

Books using my photos:

KUITER, R. & KOZAWA, T. (2019). Cardinalfishes of the World. Aquatic Photographics & Anthis (Nexus)
MORALES SERRANO, N. & HERMOSO BELTRAN, M. (2023). Guia Ika Rapa Nui. Editorial Rapanui Press
RIANSKY, A. (2019). Reef Fishes of the Coral Triangle. Reef ID Books
RIANSKY, A. (2022). Red Sea Marine Life. Reef ID Books
ROSENSTEIN, M. (2019). Fiji Reef Fish. Fish Publishing
ROWLAND, P. & EIPPER, S. (2018). A naturalist's guide to dangerous creatures of Australia. Australian Geographic
WEINBERG, S. & LIBERT, F. (2018). Découvrir la vie sous-marine – Mer Rouge, océan Indien, océan Pacifique. Tome 2. Éditions GAP

Magazines:

Coral Magazine (https://coralmagazine.com)
Aquarium World magazine (https://aquariumworld.nz/magazine/)

Scientific publications:

Allen, G. R. (2018)
Chromis torquata, a new species of damselfish (Pomacentridae) from Mauritius and Réunion. aqua, International Journal of Ichthyology v. 24 (no. 1): 15-22.
Hemingson, C. R., Cowman, P. F., Hodge, J. R., & Bellwood, D. R. (2019)
Colour pattern divergence in reef fish species is rapid and driven by both range overlap and symmetry. Ecology Letters, 22 (1). pp. 190-199 (doi: 10.1111/ele.13180)
Hemingson, C. R., Cowman, P. F. & Bellwood, D. R. (2020)
Body size determines eyespot size and presence in coral reef fishes. Ecology and Evolution, 10 (15). pp. 8144-8152. (doi: 10.1002/ece3.6509)
Hodge, J. R., Santini, F. & Wainwright, P. C. (2020)
Colour dimorphism in labrid fishes as an adaptation to life on coral reefs. Proc. R. Soc. B.2872020016720200167 (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2020.0167)
Hodge, J., Song, Y., Wightman, M., Milkey, A., Tran, B., Štajner, A. Roberts, A., Hemingson, C., Wainwright, P. & Price, S. (2021)
Constraints on the Ecomorphological Convergence of Zooplanktivorous Butterflyfishes. Integrative Organismal Biology. 3 (doi: 10.1093/iob/obab014)
Miller, E. C., Mesnick, S. L. & Wiens, J. J. (2021)
Sexual Dichromatism Is Decoupled from Diversification over Deep Time in Fishes. Am. Nat. 2021 Aug;198(2):232-252. (doi: 10.1086/715114)
Muruga, P., Siqueira, A.C. & Bellwood, D.R. (2024)
Meta-analysis reveals weak associations between reef fishes and corals. Nat Ecol Evol . (doi: 10.1038/s41559-024-02334-7)
Perevolotsky, T., Martin, C. H., Rivlin, A. & Holzman, R. (2020)
Work that body: fin and body movements determine herbivore feeding performance within the natural reef environment. Proc. R. Soc. B.28720201903 (doi: 10.1098/rspb.2020.1903)
Siqueira, A.C., Muruga, P. & Bellwood, D.R. (2023)
On the evolution of fish–coral interactions. Ecology Letters, 00, 1–11 (doi: 10.1111/ele.14245)
Tebbett, S.B., Siqueira, A.C. & Bellwood, D.R. (2022)
The functional roles of surgeonfishes on coral reefs: past, present and future. Rev Fish Biol Fisheries 32, 387–439 (doi: 10.1007/s11160-021-09692-6)
Tebbett, S.B., Bennett, S. & Bellwood, D.R. (2023)
A functional perspective on the meaning of the term ‘herbivore’ patterns versus processes in coral reef fishes. Coral Reefs (doi: 10.1007/s00338-023-02378-4)