Curriculum vitae
Postdoctoral Researcher at the Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), Seville, Spain. PhD in Biology (Museum and Institute of Zoology, Warsaw). I study species interactions in ant, microbiome and mycobiome communities.
Professional experience
Jan 2025 – present
Postdoctoral Researcher
Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), Department of Conservation Biology and Global Change · Seville, Spain
May 2024 – Jun 2024
Specialist in ant species identification
Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), Department of Conservation Biology and Global Change · Seville, Spain
Identification of ant species from pitfall-trap samples from Spain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands, for ecological research and biodiversity assessments.
Education
Oct 2019 – Sep 2024
PhD in Biology
Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences · Warsaw, Poland
How do reintroductions of parasites work? A multi-level comparison of source and reintroduced populations of Phengaris teleius: population genetics, adult morphology, and the behavioural, chemical and acoustic adaptations of the caterpillars to their Myrmica host ants.
Oct 2017 – Jul 2018
MSc in Biodiversity and Conservation Biology
Universidad Pablo de Olavide · Seville, Spain
Thesis graded 9.8/10, with honours. The effect of temperature on ant assemblages from different habitats, through taxonomic and functional diversity, and a new index for the direct effect of temperature on interspecific competition.
Sep 2012 – Sep 2016
BSc in Biology
Universitat de València · Valencia, Spain
Thesis graded 9.5/10. Ant communities of the Sierra de Javalambre: species distribution along an altitudinal gradient, and the patching effect of Juniperus sabina on ant activity and nesting.
Research stays
Oct 2021
University of Turin · Turin, Italy
Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology · Host: Prof. Luca Pietro Casacci
Recording of insect vibroacoustic signals, sonogram analysis and behavioural assays.
Jan 2020 – Feb 2020
Sorbonne Paris North University · Paris, France
Laboratory of Experimental and Comparative Ethology · Host: Prof. Patrizia d’Ettorre
GC-MS analysis of cuticular hydrocarbons and bioinformatics workflows for chemical communication in social insects.
Funding and awards
Funding · 2022 – 2025
PRELUDIUM grant 2021/41/N/NZ8/04360, National Science Centre (NCN), Poland. Bacteria – ant – plant interaction: the effect of ants as bacteria dispersal vectors and indirect drivers of plant health.
202,001 PLN (≈ 46,000 €)
Award · 2025
Best oral presentation at the XIX International Congress of the Spanish Society of Ethology and Evolutionary Ecology (Seville, Spain).
Conference talks and posters
- Talk Reintroduction provides insight into multimodal mimicry evolution in an ant social parasite. XIX Congress of the Spanish Society of Ethology and Evolutionary Ecology, Seville, Spain (2025).
- Talk Mariposas mirmecófilas reescriben su lenguaje para adaptarse a nuevas hormigas huésped. XIX International Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2025, Girona, Spain (2025).
- Poster ANT HUNTERS: A citizen science initiative for ant biodiversity research. XIX Congress of the Spanish Society of Ethology and Evolutionary Ecology, Seville, Spain (2025).
- Poster ANT HUNTERS: La ciudadanía a la caza de la biodiversidad de hormigas. XIX International Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2025, Girona, Spain (2025).
- Talk Modificación del hábitat como herramienta de control de la invasión de la hormiga argentina. XVIII International Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2024, Málaga, Spain (2024).
- Talk Recovering native ant communities by removing suitable conditions for the invasive Argentine ant. IV International Young Researchers Conference on Invasive Species (IyrCIS), online (2024).
- Talk Changes in morphology and genetic structure in two populations of Phengaris (= Maculinea) teleius 30 years after separation. Butterfly Conservation Symposium 2023, Wyboston, England (2023).
- Talk Short-time evolution in the morphology of the myrmecophilous Maculinea teleius butterfly. 8th Polish Evolutionary Conference, Toruń, Poland (2022).
- Talk Fotografía de insectos: material, técnicas y aplicaciones. XIV International Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2019, Chefchaouen, Morocco (2019).
- Talk ¿Temperatura o competencia, qué afecta más a las hormigas de Doñana? XIII Iberian Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2018, León, Spain (2018).
- Poster Listado actualizado de las hormigas de la península ibérica e islas Baleares (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). XII Iberian Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2017, Madrid, Spain (2017).
- Talk Aspectos ecológicos sobre la mirmecocenosis de solana de la Sierra de Javalambre (Teruel). XI Iberian Congress of Myrmecology, Taxomara 2016, Murcia, Spain (2016).
For journal articles and book chapters, see Publications.
Service to the community
Event organization
Organizing and Scientific Committee of the XVI (2021) and XV (2020) International Conferences of Myrmecology, Taxomara.
Peer review
Applied and Environmental Microbiology (1), Insect Conservation and Diversity (2), Arthropod-Plant Interactions (1), Polish Journal of Ecology (1).
Memberships
SORTEE, Society for Open, Reliable, and Transparent Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (since 2025).
Iberian Association of Myrmecology, member of the Governing Board (since 2012).
Workshops
Invited participant in InvaPact III: analysis of the ecological effects of biological invasions (2025).
Internships
Feb 2016 – May 2016
Scientific assistant
Valencian Institute of Agricultural Research (IVIA), Department of Entomology · Valencia, Spain
With Alejandro Tena: effect of the ant Lasius grandis on the behaviour of the parasitoid wasp Anagyrus pseudococci in mealybug colonies of Planococcus citri, a citrus pest.
Jul 2015 – Sep 2015
Environmental manager
Agricultural, Stockbreeding and Environmental Public Service, Government of Aragón · Teruel, Spain
Environmental impact reports, monitoring of river fish and deer populations in the Montes Universales National Hunting Reserve, and translocation of native plants.
Training, skills and languages
Courses
- Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis in R (2025)
- Optimizing the use of R for ecological analyses (2025)
- Advanced University Course in Ecological Network Analysis (2019)
- Animal Tracking Course (2018)
Skills
R R Markdown / Quarto ggplot2 vegan geomorph GC-MS Morphometrics Network analysis Population genetics Ant taxonomy Oxford Nanopore sequencing Macro photography
Languages
Spanish: native
English: B2 (independent user)
References
Dr. Elena Angulo (postdoc, EBD-CSIC) · Dr. Magdalena Witek (PhD, MIIZ-PAS) · Dr. Xim Cerdá (MSc, EBD-CSIC) · Prof. Ximo Baixeras (BSc, Universitat de València). Contact details in the PDF or on request.