Research

My research interests deal with the understanding of various mechanisms that shape the biodiversity and their impact on the ecosystem functioning. My research aim to evaluate how the species and their abundance within community contribute to maintain the functions of the whole assemblage. The long term objectives look at i) the spatial distribution of biodiversity and to evaluate which environmental and biotic variables are important shaping pattern; ii) link diversity and the function within communities; iii) what is the role of keystone species in the maintain of community functions, and iv) give prediction of human impacts on ecosystems. To answer these questions I use benthic intertidal habitats that show high species diversity and numbers of functional traits. The population recruitment and dynamics are fast (<1 yr), experimental manipulation in the community are not complex and abiotic variable are easy to measure in this accessible habitat. I favor field data into observational and experimental design and work both at large scale (macro-ecology and meta-analysis) and with theoretical concept like energy flux among population into community.