P W Leslie
Biographic Data
| ID | 2150 |
|---|---|
| NAME | P W Leslie |
| GIVEN NAMES | P W |
| FAMILY NAME | Leslie |
| SIGNATURE | LESLIE P W |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-9856-4602 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 31 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 274 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 31 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1983 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| H-INDEX | 10 |
The Emergence of the Village and the Transformation of Traditional Institutions
In this paper, we examine how the 2008-2009 drought in northern Tanzania contributed to and catalyzed the transformation of governance concerning the management of natural resources from traditional informal institutions among the Maasai to formal village-based institutions. Our central argument is that village governance in northern Tanzania represents a new, formal institution that is supplementing and in some important ways obviating tradition…
Collecting women's reproductive histories
The importance of women's reproductive histories for scientific questions mandates rigor in collecting data. Unfortunately, few studies say much about how histories were constructed and validated. The aim of this report, therefore, is to illustrate the elements of a rigorous system of data collection. It focuses particularly on potential sources of inaccuracy in collecting reproductive histories and on options for avoiding them and evaluating the…
Livelihood Diversification through Migration among a Pastoral People
This paper brings together over two decades of research concerning the patterns and processes of livelihood diversification through migration among Maasai pastoralists and agro-pastoralists of northern Tanzania. Two case studies, one from the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the other from the Simanjiro plains, jointly demonstrate the complexity of migration within a single ethnic group. We analyze the relationship between wealth and migration an…
Coping with Natural Hazards in a Conservation Context
Conservation as disturbance
Response Diversity and Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems
Recent work in ecology suggests that the diversity of responses to environmental change among species contributing to the same ecosystem function can strongly influence ecosystem resilience. To render this important realization more useful for understanding coupled human-natural systems, we broaden the concept of response diversity to include heterogeneity in human decisions and action. Simply put, not all actors respond the same way to challenge…
Differences in intergenerational fertility associations by sex and race in Saba, Dutch Caribbean, 1876–2004
This study examines the intergenerational transmission of fertility behavior in Saba, Dutch Caribbean from 1876 to 2004 using reconstituted genealogies. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients of several fertility measures and event-history models of age at first birth are used to explore relationships between the fertility of mothers and their children. The strength of intergenerational fertility ties varies by race and gender. Individua…
Adopting Cultivation to Remain Pastoralists
The Effect of Wildlife Conservation on Local Perceptions of Risk and Behavioral Response
Age‐related changes in testosterone and SHBG among Turkana males
To determine age‐related changes in biologically available testosterone (T) among men in a subsistence society and their relationship to energetic status, T, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and anthropometric measures were compared among nomadic and settled Turkana pastoralists of northern Kenya. Hormonal measures were available for 104 nomadic men and 72 settled men, estimated ages 20–90 years. Comparison of the two subpopulations revealed s…
Age-related patterns of urinary Gonadotropins (FSH and LH) and E-3-G as measures of reproductive function among Turkana Males of Northern Kenya
To determine age-related patterns of gonadotropins and their relationship to energetic status in a subsistence population we analyzed urinary FSH, LH, and estrone-3-glucuronide (E-3-G) along with anthropometric measures among Turkana males of northern Kenya. Subjects were 134 nomadic and 109 settled males ages 20 to 80+. FSH, LH and E-3-G were significantly higher among the settled, compared to nomadic, males. LH, but not FSH, showed a significan…
Livestock Acquisitions Dynamics in Nomadic Pastoralist Herd Demography
Age-related changes in body composition among Turkana males of Kenya
To determine if age-related changes in body composition among males from an energetically limited population are similar to those of Western populations, we collected anthropometric data from Turkana pastoral nomads of northern Kenya. Measures included height, weight, and triceps, suprailiac, and subscapular skinfolds. Subjects were 132 nomadic and 90 settled Turkana males, with estimated ages 20+. Skinfold measures were used to calculate both fa…
Pubertal timing, hormones, and body composition among adolescent Turkana males
The Turkana, like other East African pastoral groups, are known for their tall adult stature, achieved despite a blunted growth spurt during adolescence and continued growth into the early 20s. To investigate the hormonal mechanisms associated with the pattern of slow and continued adolescent growth, we collected data on hormonal status, height, weight, and trunk skinfolds and ethnographic self‐reports of testicular maturation in a cross‐sectiona…
Comparison of body composition among settled and nomadic Turkana of Kenya
Adoption of farming along the rivers of Turkana District in Kenya has lead to the settling of traditionally nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana pastoralists. The impact of resulting changes in activity and energy expenditure, disease, and diet have not been investigated previously. This study examines the effects of subsistence transition on body composition of nomadic and settled Turkana. Anthropometric measurements (height, weight, skinfolds, circumfere…
Human Biology and Ecology
Human biology seeks to understand human variation and the biological, environmental, social, and historical influences on that variation. Views of the nature of both variation and environment have changed during the past 100 years. Typological approaches to nature and human diversity shifted to an evolutionary perspective during the first half of the 20th century. In the second half, widespread human biological variation was documented and interp…
Cattle Raiding, Cultural Survival, and Adaptability of East African Pastoralists
Since the late 1970s, cattle raiding with automatic weapons has escalated among nomadic herding societies in northern East Africa. We examine the impact of AK47 raiding on the adaptability of Karimojong agropastoralists in northern Uganda. Most notably, raiding is linked to a loss of population resilience in Karamoja, measured in increased mortality of young children and of adult males in their prime reproductive years and decreased female fertil…
Risk-sensitive fertility
Demographic consequences of unpredictability in fertility outcomes
Child survival is probabilistic, but the unpredictability in family formation and completed family size has been neglected in the fertility literature. In many societies, ending the family cycle with too few or too many surviving offspring entails serious social, economic, or fitness consequences. A model of risk‐ (or variance‐) sensitive adaptive behavior that addresses long‐term fertility outcomes is presented. The model shows that under condit…
A Comparison of Health Complaints of Settled and Nomadic Turkana Men
This article examines the health complaints of settled and nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana of northwest Kenya. Samples of 152 nomadic and 124 settled men, aged 14 and over, were surveyed about their health status. The general pattern of disease reported concurs with previous studies of health among Turkana; that is, the primary complaints are respiratory tract infections and eye infections. The settled Turkana reported more severe complaints and highe…
Reproductive ecology of human males
Recent demonstrations that female reproductive physiology is highly responsive to environmental factors have led to a growing appreciation of the extent of variation in reproductive function and the adaptive nature of much of that variation. Male reproductive function has received much less attention from anthropologists, whether as an aspect of human variation, as a possible contributor to population variation in fertility, or as the product of …
Diet, Nutrition, and the Pastoral Strategy
Growth of nomadic and settled Turkana infants of northwest Kenya
Turkana tribespeople reside in a semi‐arid savanna ecosystem in northwest Kenya. For over a decade, Ngisonyoka Turkana nomads have been studied within a multidisciplinary framework that embraces ecology, anthropology, and human population biology. Original research objectives of the South Turkana Ecosystem Project were to study nomads longitudinally and within the context of the dry savanna ecosystem. These objectives have been expanded to incorp…
Energy reserves and parity of nomadic and settled Turkana women
Members of the Turkana tribe include settled and nomadic peoples who reside in the southern part of Turkana District in the semiarid region of northwest Kenya. Nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana keep livestock (camels, cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys), subsist principally on livestock products, and move camps frequently in search of forage for the livestock; settled Turkana cultivate foods along the principal rivers. Both nomadic and settled Turkana are su…
Council officers and committees
Response Diversity and Resilience in Social-Ecological Systems
Recent work in ecology suggests that the diversity of responses to environmental change among species contributing to the same ecosystem function can strongly influence ecosystem resilience. To render this important realization more useful for understanding coupled human-natural systems, we broaden the concept of response diversity to include heterogeneity in human decisions and action. Simply put, not all actors respond the same way to challenge…
Cattle Raiding, Cultural Survival, and Adaptability of East African Pastoralists
Since the late 1970s, cattle raiding with automatic weapons has escalated among nomadic herding societies in northern East Africa. We examine the impact of AK47 raiding on the adaptability of Karimojong agropastoralists in northern Uganda. Most notably, raiding is linked to a loss of population resilience in Karamoja, measured in increased mortality of young children and of adult males in their prime reproductive years and decreased female fertil…
Extreme seasonality of births among nomadic Turkana pastoralists
Births to nomadic Turkana women in northwest Kenya follow one of the most highly seasonal distributions ever reported for a human population, with more than half of all births falling between March and June. Important aspects of the Turkana environment also fluctuate greatly over the course of the year. The rate of conception is apparently highest during the early dry season, when the food supply has been at its best for some time, and when women…
Adopting Cultivation to Remain Pastoralists
Growth of nomadic and settled Turkana infants of northwest Kenya
Turkana tribespeople reside in a semi‐arid savanna ecosystem in northwest Kenya. For over a decade, Ngisonyoka Turkana nomads have been studied within a multidisciplinary framework that embraces ecology, anthropology, and human population biology. Original research objectives of the South Turkana Ecosystem Project were to study nomads longitudinally and within the context of the dry savanna ecosystem. These objectives have been expanded to incorp…
Reproductive ecology of human males
Recent demonstrations that female reproductive physiology is highly responsive to environmental factors have led to a growing appreciation of the extent of variation in reproductive function and the adaptive nature of much of that variation. Male reproductive function has received much less attention from anthropologists, whether as an aspect of human variation, as a possible contributor to population variation in fertility, or as the product of …
The Effect of Wildlife Conservation on Local Perceptions of Risk and Behavioral Response
Conservation as disturbance
Livestock Acquisitions Dynamics in Nomadic Pastoralist Herd Demography
Human Biology and Ecology
Human biology seeks to understand human variation and the biological, environmental, social, and historical influences on that variation. Views of the nature of both variation and environment have changed during the past 100 years. Typological approaches to nature and human diversity shifted to an evolutionary perspective during the first half of the 20th century. In the second half, widespread human biological variation was documented and interp…
A Comparison of Health Complaints of Settled and Nomadic Turkana Men
This article examines the health complaints of settled and nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana of northwest Kenya. Samples of 152 nomadic and 124 settled men, aged 14 and over, were surveyed about their health status. The general pattern of disease reported concurs with previous studies of health among Turkana; that is, the primary complaints are respiratory tract infections and eye infections. The settled Turkana reported more severe complaints and highe…
Potential mates analysis and the study of human population structure
Analysis of the size and characteristics of potential mate pools is a powerful technique for assessing the importance of social, demographic, geographic, and other influences on patterns of mating and migration. It is also useful for testing the effects of certain assumptions underlying methods commonly used in studies of population structure. Potential mates analysis has been applied to several different populations. It has clarified some aspect…
Pubertal timing, hormones, and body composition among adolescent Turkana males
The Turkana, like other East African pastoral groups, are known for their tall adult stature, achieved despite a blunted growth spurt during adolescence and continued growth into the early 20s. To investigate the hormonal mechanisms associated with the pattern of slow and continued adolescent growth, we collected data on hormonal status, height, weight, and trunk skinfolds and ethnographic self‐reports of testicular maturation in a cross‐sectiona…
Differences in intergenerational fertility associations by sex and race in Saba, Dutch Caribbean, 1876–2004
This study examines the intergenerational transmission of fertility behavior in Saba, Dutch Caribbean from 1876 to 2004 using reconstituted genealogies. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients of several fertility measures and event-history models of age at first birth are used to explore relationships between the fertility of mothers and their children. The strength of intergenerational fertility ties varies by race and gender. Individua…
Partitioning chi-square for the analysis of frequency table data
Age-related patterns of urinary Gonadotropins (FSH and LH) and E-3-G as measures of reproductive function among Turkana Males of Northern Kenya
To determine age-related patterns of gonadotropins and their relationship to energetic status in a subsistence population we analyzed urinary FSH, LH, and estrone-3-glucuronide (E-3-G) along with anthropometric measures among Turkana males of northern Kenya. Subjects were 134 nomadic and 109 settled males ages 20 to 80+. FSH, LH and E-3-G were significantly higher among the settled, compared to nomadic, males. LH, but not FSH, showed a significan…
Cohorts, overlapping generations and consanguinity estimates
A number of problems in human population genetics involve determining the effects of non-random mating due to cultural or geographic factors, and therefore requires determination of expectations based on random mating. These expectations are usually taken to be the arithmetic mean of the contributions of all possible pairs drawn from a subpopulation of individuals of mating age during a specified period. This cohort approach in effect treats the …
Partitioning chi-square for the analysis of frequency table data
Caloric requirements of human populations
Patterns of supplementation, nursing behavior, and lactation
The use of computer simulation has many advantages for the study of human milk production. The simulation presented here deals with the interactions between infant calorie requirements and mothers' responses to these requirements, measured in terms of milk production. The simulated mother-infant interactions include: 1) the effects of different patterns of the use of breast milk supplements; 2) the effects of varying degrees of responsiveness on …
Potential mates analysis and the study of human population structure
Analysis of the size and characteristics of potential mate pools is a powerful technique for assessing the importance of social, demographic, geographic, and other influences on patterns of mating and migration. It is also useful for testing the effects of certain assumptions underlying methods commonly used in studies of population structure. Potential mates analysis has been applied to several different populations. It has clarified some aspect…
Extreme seasonality of births among nomadic Turkana pastoralists
Births to nomadic Turkana women in northwest Kenya follow one of the most highly seasonal distributions ever reported for a human population, with more than half of all births falling between March and June. Important aspects of the Turkana environment also fluctuate greatly over the course of the year. The rate of conception is apparently highest during the early dry season, when the food supply has been at its best for some time, and when women…
Council officers and committees
Energy reserves and parity of nomadic and settled Turkana women
Members of the Turkana tribe include settled and nomadic peoples who reside in the southern part of Turkana District in the semiarid region of northwest Kenya. Nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana keep livestock (camels, cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys), subsist principally on livestock products, and move camps frequently in search of forage for the livestock; settled Turkana cultivate foods along the principal rivers. Both nomadic and settled Turkana are su…
Growth of nomadic and settled Turkana infants of northwest Kenya
Turkana tribespeople reside in a semi‐arid savanna ecosystem in northwest Kenya. For over a decade, Ngisonyoka Turkana nomads have been studied within a multidisciplinary framework that embraces ecology, anthropology, and human population biology. Original research objectives of the South Turkana Ecosystem Project were to study nomads longitudinally and within the context of the dry savanna ecosystem. These objectives have been expanded to incorp…
Diet, Nutrition, and the Pastoral Strategy
Reproductive ecology of human males
Recent demonstrations that female reproductive physiology is highly responsive to environmental factors have led to a growing appreciation of the extent of variation in reproductive function and the adaptive nature of much of that variation. Male reproductive function has received much less attention from anthropologists, whether as an aspect of human variation, as a possible contributor to population variation in fertility, or as the product of …
A Comparison of Health Complaints of Settled and Nomadic Turkana Men
This article examines the health complaints of settled and nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana of northwest Kenya. Samples of 152 nomadic and 124 settled men, aged 14 and over, were surveyed about their health status. The general pattern of disease reported concurs with previous studies of health among Turkana; that is, the primary complaints are respiratory tract infections and eye infections. The settled Turkana reported more severe complaints and highe…
Risk-sensitive fertility
Demographic consequences of unpredictability in fertility outcomes
Child survival is probabilistic, but the unpredictability in family formation and completed family size has been neglected in the fertility literature. In many societies, ending the family cycle with too few or too many surviving offspring entails serious social, economic, or fitness consequences. A model of risk‐ (or variance‐) sensitive adaptive behavior that addresses long‐term fertility outcomes is presented. The model shows that under condit…
Comparison of body composition among settled and nomadic Turkana of Kenya
Adoption of farming along the rivers of Turkana District in Kenya has lead to the settling of traditionally nomadic Ngisonyoka Turkana pastoralists. The impact of resulting changes in activity and energy expenditure, disease, and diet have not been investigated previously. This study examines the effects of subsistence transition on body composition of nomadic and settled Turkana. Anthropometric measurements (height, weight, skinfolds, circumfere…
Human Biology and Ecology
Human biology seeks to understand human variation and the biological, environmental, social, and historical influences on that variation. Views of the nature of both variation and environment have changed during the past 100 years. Typological approaches to nature and human diversity shifted to an evolutionary perspective during the first half of the 20th century. In the second half, widespread human biological variation was documented and interp…
Cattle Raiding, Cultural Survival, and Adaptability of East African Pastoralists
Since the late 1970s, cattle raiding with automatic weapons has escalated among nomadic herding societies in northern East Africa. We examine the impact of AK47 raiding on the adaptability of Karimojong agropastoralists in northern Uganda. Most notably, raiding is linked to a loss of population resilience in Karamoja, measured in increased mortality of young children and of adult males in their prime reproductive years and decreased female fertil…
Age-related changes in body composition among Turkana males of Kenya
To determine if age-related changes in body composition among males from an energetically limited population are similar to those of Western populations, we collected anthropometric data from Turkana pastoral nomads of northern Kenya. Measures included height, weight, and triceps, suprailiac, and subscapular skinfolds. Subjects were 132 nomadic and 90 settled Turkana males, with estimated ages 20+. Skinfold measures were used to calculate both fa…
Pubertal timing, hormones, and body composition among adolescent Turkana males
The Turkana, like other East African pastoral groups, are known for their tall adult stature, achieved despite a blunted growth spurt during adolescence and continued growth into the early 20s. To investigate the hormonal mechanisms associated with the pattern of slow and continued adolescent growth, we collected data on hormonal status, height, weight, and trunk skinfolds and ethnographic self‐reports of testicular maturation in a cross‐sectiona…
Age‐related changes in testosterone and SHBG among Turkana males
To determine age‐related changes in biologically available testosterone (T) among men in a subsistence society and their relationship to energetic status, T, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and anthropometric measures were compared among nomadic and settled Turkana pastoralists of northern Kenya. Hormonal measures were available for 104 nomadic men and 72 settled men, estimated ages 20–90 years. Comparison of the two subpopulations revealed s…
Age-related patterns of urinary Gonadotropins (FSH and LH) and E-3-G as measures of reproductive function among Turkana Males of Northern Kenya
To determine age-related patterns of gonadotropins and their relationship to energetic status in a subsistence population we analyzed urinary FSH, LH, and estrone-3-glucuronide (E-3-G) along with anthropometric measures among Turkana males of northern Kenya. Subjects were 134 nomadic and 109 settled males ages 20 to 80+. FSH, LH and E-3-G were significantly higher among the settled, compared to nomadic, males. LH, but not FSH, showed a significan…
Livestock Acquisitions Dynamics in Nomadic Pastoralist Herd Demography
The Effect of Wildlife Conservation on Local Perceptions of Risk and Behavioral Response
Adopting Cultivation to Remain Pastoralists
Differences in intergenerational fertility associations by sex and race in Saba, Dutch Caribbean, 1876–2004
This study examines the intergenerational transmission of fertility behavior in Saba, Dutch Caribbean from 1876 to 2004 using reconstituted genealogies. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients of several fertility measures and event-history models of age at first birth are used to explore relationships between the fertility of mothers and their children. The strength of intergenerational fertility ties varies by race and gender. Individua…
Geography (17 works) · Population (17 works) · Biology (16 works) · Demography (16 works) · Sociology (14 works) · Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology (13 works) · Ecology (11 works) · Economics (10 works) · Psychology (9 works) · Medicine (7 works)