People
Fernando Alda
Principal Investigator
Fernando is broadly interested in the processes that generate and maintain biological diversity across species and landscapes. His work examines the influence of ecological and geological factors on genetic variation and speciation, spanning levels from genomes to entire ecosystems.
See his CV for more information.
José María Morales
Master’s Student (2026–)
Chema is an MSc student at the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo. His thesis investigates tissue-specific gene expression in Neotropical electric fishes (Gymnotiformes), comparing patterns across populations and taxonomic groups, from species to families.
Carmela Sánchez Conde
Master’s Student (2026–)
Carmela is an MSc student at the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo. Her research compares the diversity and community composition of prokaryotes and endoparasites in fecal samples from populations of specialist and generalist carnivores in Spain.
Violeta Nieto
Master’s Student (2026–)
Violeta is a MSc student at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She is investigating microbiome transfer between native and invasive crayfish species, exploring how interactions between host species may shape their associated microbial communities.
Óscar García Escrihuela
Lab Technician
Óscar holds an MSc in Genetics and Genomics. He is a lab technician and research assistant doing molecular work and metabarcoding data analysis.
Interested in joining the lab?
We are seeking motivated, collaborative, and dynamic individuals to join the lab, including postdoctoral researchers, graduate students (master’s or Ph.D.), and undergraduates. We welcome those interested in evolutionary biology, systematics, population genomics, and freshwater biodiversity.
If you are curious about these topics, have your own ideas, or want to propose a project, we encourage you to get in touch!
Past Lab Members
William Hanson-Regan
Master’s Student (2021–2023)
Will completed a MS studying the drivers of gut microbiome diversity and community structure among native and introduced minnows (genus Cyprinella) in the southeastern United States. He is currently a criminal defense consultant, specialized in genetics.
Sebastian Jimenez
Undergraduate Student (2022–2023)
Sebastian was an honors undergraduate student working on the characterization and phylogenetic inference of complete mitochondrial genomes of Congo River lamprologine cichlids. Sebastian is now a senior at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Taya de Blonk
Undergraduate Student (2020–2021)
Taya was an undergraduate student working on the phylogeography of stonerollers (Campostoma) across their distribution range from Mexico to New York. Taya is now a PhD student at North Carolina State University and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Science.