Vicky Dominguez Almela is an early career researcher working on aquatic and invasion ecology. Vicky is originally from Spain, where she did her undergraduate degree on Marine and Environmental Sciences. Vicky moved to England to complete her MSc and PhD, specialising her knowledge on aquatic systems and invasive species. She is now working within the School of Geography and Environmental Sciences at the University of Southampton and is an active committee member of the Invasive Species Special Interest Group at the British Ecological Society.
Vicky develops ecological models incorporating mapping (GIS), abundance data and species-specific scientific knowledge to project population and dispersal dynamics. These models can be translated into guidance on how to better manage invasive species. Vicky also works with stable isotope data, investigating the trophic impacts and the dietary contribution of different species. This data can also be used to build spatial distribution maps of isotopic ratios in natural environments and predict animal movement. Lately, Vicky has been working on creating simple predictive models in ecology using Bayesian belief networks, providing a user-friendly interface for ecological and environmental research through the development of an R package.
Vicky’s skills also include citizen science as a tool to enhance transformational adaptation opportunities from invasive species events, with the case of the brown seaweed Sargassum fluitans and natans in the tropical Atlantic and the green seaweed ulva in Poole Harbour (England). As a result of this work, she has developed strong collaborations with biologists, oceanographers, remote sensers, educators and social scientists, nationally and internationally. Vicky is working on bringing her research findings and best practices to practitioners and the general public, with a lot of work done internationally in schools. Read more.
Vicky Dominguez Almela is actively involved in the recently created Seaweed School and Community Network, an initiative aimed at enhancing public understanding and engagement with marine ecology and conservation through education. Vicky focuses on using seaweed as educational tools to explore broader ecological concepts and the impact of invasive species. This initiative fosters collaborations between scientists, educators, and the public to promote knowledge exchange and awareness about marine ecosystems. More details can be found here.
Vicky’s aim is to further support dialogue between ecological and stakeholders’ “languages” to better understand, control and/or adapt to invasive species events.