Mariana Fuentes

Principal Investigator

Dr. Mariana Fuentes

Dr. Fuentes is a marine conservation biologist, whose work provides critical scientific basis to aid the recovery of threatened marine megafauna, in particular marine turtles. Her research draws together a wide range of disciplines, and she often work closely with various stakeholders on interdisciplinary research topics and management issues. Her expertise is in integrating field-based ecology with systematic conservation planning, decision-theory approaches, climate modelling, and applied qualitative and geographic spatial analysis. She uses these tools to explore how marine megafauna, especially marine turtles, interact with environmental processes and how they are impacted by current and future disturbances. Her passion for the ocean and marine megafauna and her concerns about their future has prompted her to develop a research program that addresses real-world issues and focuses on connecting people to science for effective change. Meet the alumni

Postdoctoral Researchers

Dr. Joshua Cullen

Dr. Cullen is a NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Marine Turtle Research Ecology and Conservation Group. More  information about his work can be found here.

Dr. Joshua Manning

Dr. Manning is broadly interested in community ecology and the effects of anthropogenic stressors on organismal physiology and ecology. More information on his research can be found here.

Ph.D. Students

Armando Barsante

Ph.D. Student.

Julia Saltzman

Ph.D. Candidate. More on Julia’s work can be found here.

Ian Silver-Gorges

Ph.D. Student.

Kristen Sella

Ph.D. Student.

M.Sc. Students

Savannah Weber

M.Sc. Student.

Undergraduate Students

Kaleb Hobson-Garcia

Undergraduate Student.

Luna Oliveira de Mello Vieira

Undergraduate Student.

Sydney Rodetsky

Undergraduate Student, UROP.

Aidan Perez

Undergraduate Student supervised directly by Dr. Cullen

Catalina Llanos

Undergraduate Student. DIS

Kiersten Schweizer

Undergraduate Student. Intern

Taylor Powell

Undergraduate Student, Intern

Marley Hoffman

Undergraduate Student, UROP

Carlianne Nieding

Undergraduate Student. Intern

Lili Cea Salazar

Undergraduate Student. DIS

Lab Manager and Field Assistants

Sophie Mills

Lab Manager (USA)

Cintia Miranda

Field Coordinator (Brazil)

Tattiane Hato

Field Assistant ( Brazil)

Luis Felipe Wurdig Bortolon

Field Assistant (Brazil)

Prospective Graduate Students

Thank you for your interest in considering the Marine Turtle Research, Ecology, and Conservation Group for conducting your graduate studies at the Department of Earth Ocean and Atmospheric Science at Florida State University.

I look for mature students who are motivated and hard-working and already have a clear idea of their research interests when they enter the program. Almost all of my past Ph.D. students completed Master’s degrees before entering the Ph.D. program or have demonstrated experience in the field.

Funding is a major determinant in acceptance into the program, so I strongly encourage anyone applying to the program to apply for an NSF graduate fellowship, and also consider the EPA STARDr. Nancy Foster Scholarship Program (NOAA), and NMFS/SeaGrant Fellowship Program. Funding deadlines are usually one year before you might start your studies, so planning ahead is crucial.

Still interested in joining the lab? Contact us with the following information: (1) a CV, (2) a copy of your transcript, (3) a summary of research and field experience, and (4) a short statement of research interests.