My research interests have been focused on terrestrial mammal´s ecology, particularly on the habitat-species and predator-prey relationships through (multi-scale) ecological modelling analysis aiming to describe the influencing factors, and to forecast their distributions. Another important topic that I have been addressing, were the effects of roads on Mediterranean vertebrates. During 11 years I studied the direct impacts of roads through the monitoring of road-kills aiming to assess possible demographic effects and proposing mitigation measures.

In 2015, I finished my PhD thesis "Assessing and mitigating road effects on functional landscape connectivity: a case study with common genets (Genetta genetta) in a Mediterranean context - SFRH/BD/66393/2009", which addressed the assessment of the functional landscape connectivity in southern Portugal. The main focus was to understand the role of habitat corridors and landscape structure on carnivore´s functional landscape connectivity, distribution and abundance. Particularly we wanted to know how roads influenced the dispersion of juveniles and consequently the gene flow, which contributes for population persistence.

Currently, my postdoctoral research project “Large predator removal shapes the coexistence of mesocarnivores: the mesopredator release impacts revisited - SFRH/BPD/115228/2016” will be focused in describe the factors influencing the redistribution and coexistence of mesocarnivores (Cape and common genets as focal species) under a large-predator-free scenario (e.g. lions, brown hyenas, wild dogs) at Great Fish River Reserve, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Mechanisms behind ecological segregation will be assessed combining results from camera-trapping, telemetry and diet studies. Specific objectives are to: (1) quantify home range sizes and overlaps, habitat selection, distance movements, number and sharing of resting site and latrines; (2) assess temporal segregation in activity patterns by comparing activity peaks, resting bouts, latrine use and influence of climatic conditions; and (3) evaluate diet segregation and check its relation to a possible differential use of fine-scale structures inside habitat patches.

ORCID