About me

I am a Ph.D. biologist interested in the taxonomy and systematics of several arachnid orders (Amblypygi, Uropygi, Schizomida, and Scorpiones), mainly from the Neotropics. I performed my undergraduate study "Taxonomic revision of Tityus (Archaeotityus) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Colombia" at Universidad del Valle, advised by Ranulfo González (Ph.D.) and Eduardo Flórez D. (Ph.D.) Meanwhile, I performed extensive field work in Colombia, obtaining samples of several new taxa of the smaller arachnid orders.

After graduating from the biology program, I worked for two years as a professional biologist for different private institutions (e.g., Bosques & Semillas, Unión Temporal Jaguar Corredor Norandino, Universidad ICESI- Cali, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)). In doing so, I performed experimental design, data collection, statistical analyses, material identification, and ecological reports for selected arthropod taxa (e.g., ants, dung beetles, and spiders) in different Colombian ecosystems (i.e., Andean Forest, Dry tropical Forest, and Paramo).

Later on, in 2015, I moved to Brazil and started my Ph.D. project "Phylogenetic analysis of the Tityus clathratus species group and other Tityus groups and subgenera (Scorpiones, Buthidae) based on molecular and morphological characters" under the advice of Ricardo Pinto-da-Rocha (Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP). During my Ph.D., I also worked with arachnid orders such as Amblypygi and Schizomida, publishing some contributions and reviewing some articles for a handful of journals.

After getting my Ph.D., in 2021, I became occasional lecturer at the Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS), Bucaramanga, Colombia. In 2022, I worked as entomologist during four months performing sampling and ecological reports using dung beetles, as study model, for Ecopetrol and Servicios Geológicos Integrados (S.G.I.) S.A.S. Finally, in 2022, I joint the Division of Invertebrate Zoology of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, as a postdoctoral fellow in the National Science Foundation (NSF) project: "Systematics and evolution of Pedipalpi (whip spiders and whip scorpions): phylogenomics and morphology of understudied arachnids" (Principal Investigator: Dr. Lorenzo Prendini) (https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2003382&HistoricalAwards=false). In this project, I am focused on terminal sampling, field collecting, high-throughput targeted enrichment, and morphological character coding of the clade Pedipalpi.