Luis Ceríaco

I’m currently an Auxiliary Researcher at the University of Porto, where I act as the Head of Collections & Research and curator of herpetology of the Natural History and Science Museum of the University of Porto since 2018. I’m also the invited curator of the herpetological collections of the National Natural History and Science Museum of the University of Lisbon (including the rich collections of the former Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical  - IICT).

I finished my Bachelor degree in Biology in 2008, my M.Sc. in Conservation Biology in 2010, and my Ph.D. in History & Philosophy of Science – Museology in 2014, both in the University of Évora, Portugal. After my Ph.D. I had the opportunity to work as a post-doctoral researcher at the California Academy of Science, the Florida Museum of Natural History, Villanova University and University of Michigan-Dearborn. 

My main research lines focus on 1) African vertebrate zoology, 2) Integrative taxonomy; 3) theoretical and practical aspects of taxonomy and nomenclature; 4) general herpetology; 5) Natural history collections management & specimen-based research; and 6) history of science.

Since 2012 I have been involved in several projects in Africa – mainly in Angola and São Tomé & Príncipe – where I been carrying out and organizing field expeditions with the main focus of uncovering the hidden and still unknow biological diversity of such regions.

As an alpha-taxonomist I have described more than 30 new vertebrate species to science. I’m also a Commissioner of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), a member of the centenary Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa (SGL, Lisbon Geography Society), and a National Geographic Explorer. In Africa, I’m currently a external consultant for several governamental institutions related to biodiversity and natural history museums, and have strong ongoing partnerships with local universities, NGO’s, governamental bodies and international agencies.