Exploring the relationship between species interactions and the persistence of biodiversity ​

Our lab combines tools from complex network theory with theoretical, experimental, and empirical approaches to uncover how species interactions drive community dynamics. Because these interactions underpin most ecosystem services—and often disappear faster than the species themselves—a central goal of our research is to understand the processes that sustain ecosystems. To predict and prevent biodiversity loss and the collapse of ecosystem services, we link the functional and structural properties of ecological interactions to the robustness of communities in the face of global change.

Our current projects explore multiple dimensions of species interactions, including how individual-level variation shapes interaction patterns and ecological dynamics, how evolutionary history influences interaction flexibility, and how climate change will affect ecosystem services through changes in interaction patterns. 

I am always looking for interested PhD students and postdocs, so please get in touch! 
​~ Lab News ~ 
  • September 2025. UC Merced has officially been certified as a Bee Campus USA thanks to a lab effort and a grant from UCM's Center for Equitable Climate Solutions.  See the press release here and check out our website for updates. 
  • August 2025. Big news! We just got our first NSF grant!! This support will enable us to leverage our greenhouse work to investigate the effects of interaction patterns on individual and population fitness, and continue to provide new opportunities for our students.
  • August 2025. Congratulations to Magda for being awarded the UC President's Postdoctoral Fellowship!
  • June 2025. Marilia, Magda, and Baltazar were at the 2025 ATBC meeting in Oaxaca, Mexico, presenting the Lab's work and networking while enjoying the amazing Oaxacan cuisine. 
  • June 2025. Anna just passed her qualifying exam with flying colors — congratulations to our newest PhD candidate. 
  • May 2025. Congratulations to Natalie on graduating from UCM... and we’re excited that she’ll continue with us in the lab as a PhD student!
  • May 2025. Our undergraduates Rheanna and Selina graduated in style, each receiving UCM’s highest undergraduate honor for seniors—the Outstanding Student Award. Congratulations, ladies! You will be missed. 
  • March 2025. We have just been awarded a See grant from UCM's Center for Equitable Climate Solutions to transform our campus into a Bee Campus! We are excited to get this started and raise awareness about he importance of pollinators. 
  • January 2025. Magda and Baltazar successfully presented our heatwave work at the Asilomar conference and got amazing feedback. Well done, team!
  • September 2024. Magda joined the lab as a postdoc! Welcome to the Central Valley, Magda! 
  • August 2024. Baltazar joined the Lab as a postdoc! Welcome to the US, Baltazar! 
  • January 2024. We just started our first-ever experiment in the lab. Everyone was excited to get their hands dirty in the greenhouse. 
  • September 2023. An amazing team of undergrads joined the lab. Welcome, Rheanna, Natalie, Selina, and Trizthan! 
  • August 2023. Welcome Anna, the first PhD student of the Lab (co-advised by Justin Yeakel). 
  • January 2023. Time to start a new adventure as an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Merced! 
  • October 2022. After two wonderful years in Zürich, it is time to say goodbye. I will miss all the friends I made in Switzerland and the Bascompte Lab. 
  • May 2022. Another paper from my time at UCR is out in American Naturalist, check it out! 
  • ​September 2021. I am thrilled to be part of a Panel Discussion at RABECO (Brazilian Association of Ecology and Conservation). We will talk about the ecological and evolutionary impacts of the networks of life (in Portuguese).
  • April 2021. The first paper from my UCR postdoc was finally published in Nature Ecology & Evolution. And we got the cover! Check it out! 
  • July 2020. I just moved to Zürich! I am excited to join the Bascompte Lab and explore a new country (& continent)!
  • March 2020. I joined a group of scientists, led by Paulo Guimarães, to help model the spread of Covid-19 in Brazil using tools from complex networks (check out our pre-print). We are all part of the Obsevatório COVID-19 BR. 
  • February 2020. I am honored to have been awarded a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship! Starting July 1st, I will join Jordi Bascompte's group to work on the effects of climate change on species interactions. 
  • September 2019. I am the co-founder of R-Ladies Riverside. Check out our GitHub repo for some cool resources!
  • February 2019. A group of amazing scientists and I just published an e-letter in Science: "The role of sorority in building collective science".