María de los Ángeles Gallardo is a Marine Biologist with a PhD in Biology and Applied Ecology. Her research has primarily focused on the study of decapod crustaceans, with an emphasis on taxonomy, ecology, biological oceanogragraphy, biogeography, and ecophysiology. Over the past years, she has developed particular expertise in deep-sea fauna, exploring how environmental gradients influence species distributions and physiological adaptations. She is currently investigating the diversity and biogeographic patterns of benthic Brachyura and squat lobsters in the seamounts of the Nazca and Salas & Gómez ridges. Her work adopts a multidisciplinary approach, integrating oceanographic variables, molecular phylogenetics, and tolerance limits to better understand the ecological responses of these crustaceans to deep-sea environmental conditions.
She is an Associate Researcher in the Anillo Project “Oceanic Biodiversity Under Climatic Change Threat” (BiodUCCT ATE220044), embedded within the Center for Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Islands (ESMOI). In addition, she collaborates with the Biological Collections Room at Universidad Católica del Norte (SCBUCN), contributes to public engagement in marine biodiversity, and teaches undergraduate and graduate courses at the Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, UCN.
Cruises:
