We are Susana and Gaby, two South American marine mammal scientists embarked on a research expedition to Antarctica, South Georgia and Falkland Islands, to study Humpback whales and implement a citizen science project.
We want to share our journey with you!
The "Profe" Susi Caballero-Gaitan
My research interest has been focused on the use of molecular techniques to describe the population structure, conservation genetics and evolutionary processes of different groups of aquatic vertebrates. The main aim of my research is to gather new sources of information to increase our knowledge of species biology and improve their management programs. I have been working with a variety of taxonomic groups, including: humpback whales, sharks, ornamental and commercially exploited fish, marine and riverine turtles, manatees, bottlenose dolphins, Amazon River dolphins and the South American coastal and riverine dolphins: the tucuxi and the Guiana dolphins.
I have lectured in several national and international courses on aquatic mammals and I have participated in a number of specialized conferences at international level. I have been a visiting researcher at the University of Auckland (February 2000), the University of California, Berkeley (May 2000), Edith Cowen University, Perth, Western Australia (June 2003) and Universidad Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil (October 2004) and Oregon State University (June 2011). I completed my Ph. D. in Ecology and Evolution at the University of Auckland in 2007, conducted postdoctoral studies from August 2006 to November 2008 at The University of Waikato in Hamilton (New Zealand), and started as Assistant Professor at Universidad de Los Andes in January 2009. I was promoted to Associate Professor in October 2012. One of the strengths of my research is the collaborative bonds with leading NGO’s working on conservation of Colombia´s aquatic biological resources, including Fundación Omacha, Fundación Malpelo, Fundación Yubarta, Fundación Marviva as well as with Governmental Institutions such as Instituto Alexander Von Humboldt, Comisión Colombiana del Océano (Colombian Antarctic Program) and other organizations in the Caribbean (Caribbean Stranding Network, Puerto Rico) and South America (Universidad Federal do Amazonas). I am a member of the Latin American Conservation Genetics Network (Red Latinoamericana de Genética para la Conservación-ReGeneC) and the Society for Marine Mammalogy. I am one of the scientific advisors of Colombia to the International Whaling Commission. I have supervised a number of students on their B. Sc., M. Sc. and Ph. D. thesis research.
I currently teach undergraduate courses on Ecology, Aquatic Mammal Biology, Conservation Biology, Marine Sciences and Biology of Elasmobranchs, as well as graduate level courses on conservation genetics.
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LEMVA: Laboratorio de Ecologia Molecular de Vertebrados Acuatidos, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia.
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Check my Publications on Google Scholar
The "Dr" Gaby Tezanos-Pinto
I am marine biologist with more than 24 years of experience in the fields of cetacean biology and molecular ecology. My research interest is the application of multidisciplinary techniques to investigate the evolutionary and ecological forces that shape the abundance and genetic diversity of marine vertebrates. I studied Biology at the National University of Cordoba (Argentina) and completed a PhD at the University of Auckland (New Zealand). I worked as a research fellow at the University of Auckland and managed independent contracts with the industry. I taught Biology and Human Biosciences for 8 years at Massey University and co-supervised postgraduate students.
Currently, I am an adjunct research associate at Massey University and the Laboratory of aquatic vertebrates of Los Andes University. I co-supervise and mentor graduate students in a variety of projects. I also manage La Pachamama, an import company specialized in distributing Latin-American foods throughout New Zealand.
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Check my Publications on ResearchGate