Cláudia Sofia Marques da Encarnação

My main areas of interest are species conservation and management, particularly game species as the European rabbit.

Currently I'm developing my PHD thesis (SFRH/BD/80908/2011) and I aim to assess the short and medium term influence of habitat management on European rabbit distribution and abundance; evaluate the role of landscape structural connectivity on European rabbit distribution and its impacts on habitat management; and investigate the relative importance of landscape and carnivores distribution on European rabbit distribution.

I'm graduated in Biology for the University of Évora since 2004 and I developed the thesis "Modeling otter (Lutra lutra L., 1758) abundance in Monfurado Site depending on the degree of watercourses naturalization". I also have a master in Conservation Biology, by the University of Évora since 2010.

Since 2003 I've been working in the University of Évora in several projects concerning species conservation and environmental and hunting management, in Alentejo and Algarve regions. Between 2007 and 2010 I was responsible for the field work of the activity "Increase of the trophic resources of the Odelouca's Bonelli eagle couple. European rabbit recovery plan" included in the project funded by REN "Compensatory measures and specific monitoring of the Odelouca's Bonelli eagle couple (Hieraaetus fasciatus), as a result of the environmental impact evaluation process of the electric power line Sines-Portimão 3 to 400 kV". During 2011, I also integrated the team of the project "PERSIST – The role of matrix permeability for metapopulation PERSISTence in complex agricultural landscapes. The cases of Cabrera (Microtus cabrerae) and southern water voles (Arvicola sapidus) (PTDC/BIA-BEC/105110/2008)”.