Biodiversity history
Reconstructing past biodiversity dynamics through sediment records, fossils, and palaeoenvironmental proxies to understand how landscape dynamics shape biodiversity.
Sediment DNA (SedaDNA) studies have the potential to revolution the study of ecosystem changes and relate ecological processes to organism abundance changes over time. The method overcomes the limitation of taxonomic resolution of pollen and scarcity of macrofossils allowing more precise composition information for plants, but also allows for extracting information on animals. SedaDNA can be extracted from lake sediment cores at different depth of the core and the sediment can be used for DNA extraction followed by amplify DNA fragments of interest using PCR methods (metabarcoding) before sequencing.
Bursting speciation from Geological DyNamics in mountains (BurGeoN)
Biodiversity state of an area is the result of a complex collective interplay of biological processes modulated by tectonic, climatic, and geomorphic changes of landscapes. Confined mountain areas exhibit remarkably high diversity with many young endemic and rare species suggesting that those systems that are not at equilibrium and speciation is still actively ongoing. We propose that lineages emerge over fast geological time scales and within narrow geographic zones because of locally active tectono-geomorphic processes, which increase speciation rate.
Environmental Genomics Reveals Speciation in Karstic Coastal Ecosystems
Investigating the drivers of marine biodiversity hotspots, this PhD project explores how geological history and underwater landscapes have shaped fish evolution in the Caribbean. By developing a novel multi-species eDNA capture-enrichment approach, the research enables simultaneous tracking of species presence and genetic connectivity across complex marine environments. Combining these genomic insights with high-resolution seafloor mapping and landscape models, the initiative aims to uncover key speciation mechanisms while advancing next-generation tools for conservation planning.
Supported by a Horizon Europe Twinning action, the TIME-DNA project establishes Portugal's BIOPOLIS as a European hub for integrated ancient and environmental DNA research. Partnering with the University of Copenhagen and ETH Zürich, the initiative builds specialized capacity to combine deep-time molecular methods with contemporary biodiversity monitoring. Validated through a pilot study reconstructing long-term ecosystem changes in Azorean volcanic lakes, the project will deliver open analytical pipelines, advanced training, and stronger evidence bases for EU conservation policy.