I have a bachelor in Environmental Science (2013) and a master’s degree in Biodiversity and Conservation Biology (2014) from the University of Pablo de Olavide (Seville, Spain). I took the opportunity for doing my Master Thesis at Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC) within a project about an intriguing plant-animal interaction in Mediterranean mountains of southern Spain. Specifically, we revealed how nesting great owls (Bubo bubo) enriched with nutrients the soils surrounding their nests soil due to the deposition and decomposition of feces, feathers and prey remains. Throughout this period I could acquire both knowledge and experience in methods of field and lab work, statistical analyses, and manuscripts redaction.

From June 2016 to October 2017, I have been working as a research fellow at the Centre for Applied Ecology “Prof. Baeta Neves” CEABN/InBio, funded by the two following projects: ”Old-Field Recolonization in the Mediterranean Europe” (IF/00728/2013; PI, José María Fedriani); and ”Modeling the combined effect of vegetation, biotic interactions and hunting in habitats suitable for the Iberian lynx: preparation of the reintroduction conditions in Portugal” (POSEUR-03-2215-FC-000040; PI, Francisco Rego and José María Fedriani). The first project focused on how disperser spatial behavior affect endozoochore (re)colonization of old fields in Portugal and Spain and it was the first stone for my PhD proposal. For the second project I collected information on vegetation, biotic interactions, and ecosystem functioning in in potential habitat for the Iberian lynx.

Since December 2017, I am FCT predoctoral fellow with an interesting PhD dissertation entitled: “Old-field recolonization by animal-dispersed plants: combining field work, genetics and statistical modelling”. The main objective is to understand the natural recolonization of Mediterranean old-fields by animal-dispersed plants. To that end, I am studying how both the spatial distribution and the facilitative role of an endemic Mediterranean palm (Chamaerops humilis) and the spatial movement of its seed dispersers (mainly red foxes and European badgers) influence the recolonization of old-fields by native vegetation in southern Portugal (Algarve) and Spain (Doñana National Park). The understanding of these complex processes will be raised by a strong combination of experimental field ecology, genetic techniques and ecological modelling.

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