I studied Biological Sciences at the University of Granada (UGR) (1979-1984), where I also obtained my PhD in 1991. I was a predoctoral fellow of the MEC at the UGR (1986-1990) to carry out my thesis on taxonomy and diversity of chironomid macroinvertebrates from the rivers of Sierra Nevada. As a postdoctoral fellow, I spent one year at the UGR, and made two stays at the University of Pittsburgh (USA) and at the Lunz Biological Station (Austria). I have also made shorter research stays at the CNRS center and the Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse (France), the EAWAG center in Zurich (Switzerland) and the IGB in Berlin (Germany). During these stays, and subsequently, I have done research on aquatic and fluvial ecology, in particular on the dynamics of the river-riverbank ecotone.
Since 2018 I am Professor of Ecology at the University of Almeria, where I continue my research in aquatic ecology, and I teach several subjects of general and aquatic ecology in undergraduate (Environmental Sciences) and master's degrees.
RESEARCH
My research interests run along the lines of biodiversity and the functioning of aquatic ecosystems, with incursions into applied aspects related to the evaluation and management of these ecosystems.
RESEARCH GROUP: Aquatic Ecology and Aquaculture (RNM-346)
RESEARCH LINES:
- Biodiversity
- Ecosystem functioning
- Wetlands, lagoons, rivers
- Macroinvertebrates, aquatic fungi
- Submerged vegetation, riverside vegetation
PARTICIPATION IN NETWORKS (REGIONAL/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL)
I am a member of the GloBE international network (https://www.globenetwork.es/: GLoBE is an international network of freshwater ecologists, which main aim is to study the patterns and drivers of stream ecosystem functioning at the global scale).
PROJECTS TO HIGHLIGHT
- Responses to aridity of the trophic nexus riparian-riparian vegetation-river nexus in headwater rivers (RIBARID) (CGL2012-39635). Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Plan Nacional de I+D+I, PI: JJ Casas (2012-2015).
- Evaluation of impacts on the functioning of fluvial ecosystems (IMPARIOS) (CGL2007-66664-C04-02). Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Plan Nacional de I+D+I, PI: JJ Casas (2007-2010).