Marineforest team

Bio:
I am a community ecologist interested in understanding how different drivers of global change are affecting marine ecosystem functioning. Most of my research is focused on getting information on both direct and combined effects of major disturbance sources related to global change (pollution, global warming, and invasive species) to better understand ongoing threats to marine ecosystems and contribute to their efficient restoration

Bio:
I am a a PhD student at the Department of Environmental Science of the University of Girona. Her thesis project, supervised by Dr. Emma Cebrian (UdG) and Dr. Enric Ballesteros (CEAB-CSIC), is focused on the conservation and the restoration of the threatened species populations of Cystoseria’s genus, the main structural species dominating the infralitoral and ciraclitoral rocky bottoms of the Mediterranean Sea. By gathering information on the distribution of these populations, their conservational status, the population dynamics and the optimal parameters for the correct development, Jana hopes to get a step closer to developing new restoration methodologies that ensure the conservation of these marine forests. This thesis is granted by the IFUdG fellowship program from the University of Girona and envolved within the Fundación Biodiversidad (Cystoseira Forest Restoration) and MERCES European project.

Bio:
I participated in this study mainly in the identification and localization of the several Cystoseira crinita populations along the Catalan coast and in monitoring their dynamic population along the time. At moment, my principal scientific interesting is focused on the identifications of rocky habitats represented by benthonic communities and to study their relationships with environmental factors, understanding and predicting their spatial and geographic distribution.

Bio:
Currently, my research is focused on seaweed biodiversity, systematics and phylogeny. I have focalized my research mainly in Bangiales and Kallymeniaceae from Europe, and also the Mediterranean species of Cystoseira.

Bio:
My research focuses on biology and chemical ecology of sessile marine organisms. Those organisms produce secondary metabolites, which in natural conditions play several roles such as antifouling activity, deterrence from predators, space competition, among others. These bioactive metabolites have an enormous potential to be used in applications as medical drugs and cosmetics. I’m particularly interested on the biology (growth, reproduction, survival) and the secondary metabolite production in front of different environmental factors (such as the temperature in the frame of the global warming) and biotic factors (such as the invasive algae).

Bio:
My research is focused on the effects that different invasive algae species have on native macroalgal communities from the Mediterranean Sea. In particular, he is interested in what characteristics and traits of the native assemblages make the marine forests more suitable for being invaded and what are the synergistic effects that climate change and seaweed invasions might play on them. Then, putting all this information together, he expects to generate predictive distribution models that could aid in the design of effective management plans.