I reconstruct past marine ecosystems to understand how climate change and basin dynamics shape biodiversity over time. My research combines fossil records and geochemical tools to uncover how major events—like the Messinian Salinity Crisis—reshaped marine life, advancing understanding of how oceans respond to environmental stress, offering vital insights into both Earth’s past and its climate future.
Early Miocene Atlantic–Mediterranean marine ecosystem change investigated through fossil fish remains and ecological modeling
Supervisors: Konstantina Agiadi (ICM-CSIC), Elizabeth Sibert (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute; WHOI)
The Early Miocene (23–17 Ma) was a period of global marine biotic change. However, many of its aspects remain unknown and understudied. The objectives of this thesis will be to: a) reconstruct the Atlantic and Mediterranean fish communities; b) place the detected fish biodiversity and fish paleoecological changes within the dynamic Early Miocene paleoclimatic, paleoceanographic and paleogeographic context; and c) investigate potential impacts on marine ecosystem structure.
The PhD student will be trained in paleontological, geochemical and ecological modelling methods, and will collaborate closely with the Science Team of the IODP3 Expedition 505S ENIGMA. The successful candidate will join the iMARES research group, a dynamic team of senior scientists, postdoctoral researchers, and PhD students based at the ICM-CSIC, a leading marine research centre awarded the prestigious Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence distinction. The group provides an excellent training environment through participation in specialized courses, conferences, research stays, seminars, and collaborative activities, while fostering an inclusive and supportive research culture. This PhD project will be embedded within ongoing research initiatives led by Konstantina Agiadi and Elizabeth Sibert, particularly the projects FunSeas (Functional Connectivity in Ancient Seas) and MESO-BATH (Ecology and global distribution of meso- and bathypelagic fishes past and present), both funded by the Spanish Government. The student will be expected to conduct a secondment at WHOI to work Elizabeth Sibert.
Interested candidates, please contact me at: kagiadi@icm.csic.es
Institut de Ciencies del Mar (ICM-CSIC)
Barcelona, Spain
e-mail: kagiadi@icm.csic.es
ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8073-559X
To join COST Action SaltAges
please apply at https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA23124/