Non-permanent staff

Research interest

Passionate about Amazonian biodiversity and its conservation, I am currently doing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Peruvian Amazon Research Institute (IIAP) as part of the project "Anthropogenic effects on biodiversity in the Peruvian Amazon, assessed through the use of environmental DNA (eDNA)"  in the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve (RNPS) region. My research focuses on the use of eDNA approaches at the intraspecific level for demographic inference with conservation applications. I am particularly interested in four CITES species (black caiman, taricaya turtle, pink dolphin and paiche or pirarucu). Preliminary results highlight the protective role of the central zone of the reserve, with relative population abundances higher than in the periphery, even for a species such as the pink dolphin, which, unlike the black caiman, taricaya or paiche, is not directly affected by anthropogenic activities such as hunting.

Formation and research experience

I am a doctor in population genetics from the National Museum of Natural History in Paris (France), Pierre and Marie Curie University (Paris 6, Sorbonne Universities), financed by a Franco-Peruvian PhD scholarship from the Cayetano Herredia University (Lima, Peru). I defended my doctoral thesis on January 29, 2020 after having completed a degree in biology on organisms and a master's degree in functional ecology and sustainable development, specializing in ecology of continental aquatic ecosystems, at the Montpellier University of Sciences (UM2, France). After my master's studies, I did an international volunteering in Peru (2 years) in hydrobiology at the Amazon research institute (IIAP) with the French development research institute (IRD) within the framework of the international joint laboratory (LMI EDIA). My doctoral thesis focused on the identification of recent divergence events in Apistogramma agassizii and the study of the mechanisms involved in their divergence process. 

My main research interest is focused on the evolution, ecology and conservation of Amazonian species. To better understand the origin of Amazonian biodiversity, I am more specifically interested in the rapid speciation mechanisms in cichlids. In addition to the fundamental aspects related to speciation mechanisms, these studies make it possible to assess Amazonian biodiversity by delineating the limits of species. Knowing the taxonomic limits of the species and their geographical distribution is essential to be able to establish management and conservation plans.