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Biography
Sérgio Ávila graduated in Biology in 1995, completed a MSc in Insular Ecology and Evolution in 2001, and a PhD degree in Biology/Palaeontology in 2005 from the University of the Azores. He supervised 1 Post-Doc, 10 PhD students (4 in progress), 1 MSc and 10 internships. In 2005, he established his research group (MPB-Marine Palaeontology and Biogeography Lab), now with 18 members:
https://www.researchgate.net/lab/MPB-Marine-Palaeontology-and-Biogeography-lab-Sergio-P-Avila
SÁ participated in 16 research projects, with regional, national, or European funding and managed to get 10 projects approved as PI, with a total funding of 1.8 M€.
He published 78 SCI articles (71% of them as first or last author/team leader), 28 articles in other journals, 10 books and 6 chapters of books, and edited 7 books. He was also responsible for 21 technical reports related with 5 environmental impact assessments and 4 applied projects for the Azores Government: “Fossils’ Route” (2012-2014), “PalaeoPark Santa Maria” (2014-2016), Science Museum “House of the Fossils” (2016-2018) and “Action Plan for the PaleoParque Santa Maria” (2020-2023).
He organized 16 advanced courses, 33 congresses and 33 scientific expeditions in the Azores, Madeira, Canaries and Cabo Verde archipelagos. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the “Santa Maria PalaeoPark”, appointed by the International Palaeontological Association. He is also the Scientific Advisor of the "Fossils’ House" Museum, at Santa Maria Island (Azores).
Since 2005, he has been studying the patterns and processes of dispersal, colonization and speciation of shallow-water marine invertebrates in oceanic islands. His team has experts on marine molluscs, echinoderms, bryozoans, crustacean barnacles, ostracods and coralline algae forming rhodoliths. Their main interests are the geological evolution of the NE-Atlantic Macaronesian islands, and the palaeontology, palaeoecology and palaeobiogeography of Neogene to Recent ecosystems in reefless volcanic oceanic islands.
SÁ is the main author of the most recent and complete theory of marine island biogeography, the SLS – Sea-Level-Sensitive dynamic model of marine island biogeography, published in 2019 in Biological Reviews (IF=14.695) which predictions are currently being tested by 3 PhD students. SÁ completed the supervision of 1 MSc and 6 PhD students (2013, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023), and supervised 1 Leonardo da Vinci student in 2008. Currently, he supervises 4 PhD students.
SÁ is Associate Editor of Frontiers of Biogeography and of Frontiers in Marine Science, Subject editor of Biodiversity Data Journal, and an Editorial Board Member of Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, and Reviewer Board of Diversity.
He has reviewed manuscripts submitted for publication in prestigious journals such as Nature, Global Ecology and Biogeography, Global and Planetary Change, Quaternary Science Reviews, Journal of Biogeography, Marine Biology, amongst others.
SÁ also acted as reviewer of research projects for the Italian government (PRIN) and Mexican government (CONACYT).
He is also Taxonomic editor of the Paleobiology Database (https://paleobiodb.org/classic) and of Portal da Biodiversidade dos Açores (https://azoresbioportal.uac.pt/).
SÁ lectured several disciplines (Malacology, Invertebrates, Evolution and Animal Ecology) and advanced courses (Biogeography) at the University of the Azores, and at BIODIV PhD courses at the University of Porto: 2019 - Island Marine Biogeography: a comprehensive overview, 20 hours; 2020 - Marine Island Biogeography: patterns and processes, 25 hours.
SÁ is currently responsible for the 2nd edition of the “Azores Summer School in Marine Island (Palaeo)Biogeography”, an advanced course with 21 professors/35 students that integrates lectures (50 hours), field trips (20 h) and a vibrant social programme (14 h) that takes place in July 2023 at Santa Maria Island, in the Azores archipelago: https://azss.uac.pt/pt/
SÁ is a Member of IPBES - Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, and was vice-Director of the research center CIBIO-Açores (2016-2020), Director of Science and Digital Transition, Regional Government of the Azores (2020-2022), President of the FRCT (Regional Fund for Science and Technology) (2020-2021), Vowel of the General Assembly of TERINOV - Science and Technology Park (Terceira Island) (2020-2022), President of the General Assembly of NONAGON, Science and Technology Park (São Miguel Island) (2020-2022), President of the Azores Regional Council of the Portuguese Association of Biologists (Ordem dos Biólogos) (2008-2020) and Municipality Deputy at the city of Ponta Delgada (2009-2017).
Outreach is a very important subject for MPB team. SÁ produced and edited over 20 TV documentaries related with our research. SÁ is also the first author of 10 books related with the natural history of the Azores and the palaeontological heritage of Santa Maria Island.
Activities
Employment (6)
Education and qualifications (2)
Professional activities (13)
Funding (18)
Projeto 7.1 Controlo, Inspeção e Gestão - Phorcus sauciatus
Projeto 7.1 ¿ Controlo, Inspeção e Gestão - Phorcus sauciatus
M1.1.A/INFRAEST CIENT/A/001/2021
PTDC/CTA-GEO/0798/2020
UID/BIA/50027/2019
UIDB/50027/2020
LA/P/0048/2020
UIDP/50027/2020
AD36/DRA/2019
ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000078
PRINBio
PTDC/CTA-GEO/28588/2017
METEOR cruise M150/1
FCT/IF/00465/2015
Concurso Público nº3/2015/DRAM
PTDC/GEO-GEO/0051/2014
SRAM/2012/0011
PTDC/MAR/73579/2006