I am a PhD student at the University of Southampton, currently working in Dan Smale’s research group. My research focuses on the diversity stability theory, specifically investigating how marine communities respond to disturbances such as Marine heatwaves (MHWs) and the role of community diversity driving these responses.Using existing biological and environmental data on rocky subtidal and pelagic communities, I aim to assess the capacity of natural communities to withstand MHW’s (resistance), their rate of recovery (resilience), the extent of their recovery, and their overall temporal stability after being exposed to MHW’s. Additionally, I will conduct controlled experiments in which I will manipulate community diversity (synthetic assemlages) to evaluate the role of diversity in controlling various ecological functions during and after simulated MHW’s. My research project is funded by the National Agency for Research and Development (ANID-Chile).

Previously, I obtained my BSc degree in Marine Biology and was research assistant at the Universidad Austral de Chile under the supervision of Dr Nelson Valdivia. There, I completed my thesis on the occurance of Kleptoparasitism in shorebirds and worked on topics related to experimental intertidal ecology, experimental subtidal ecology, bird ecology and HAB’s in southern Chile. In my spare time I am also a musician, basketball player and birder.