Evolutionary ecology on oceanic islands
14 Jan 2026 - Manuel Nogales, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) | 10h30 | Hybrid Seminar
CASUAL SEMINAR IN BIODIVERSITY AND EVOLUTION
The geographical isolation of oceanic islands allows, to a large extent, the development of unique ecological and evolutionary processes of great scientific interest. It is important to note that Charles Darwin and Alfred R. Wallace developed the Theory of Evolution, based on natural selection, in this type of environment. In the past, much of the available knowledge about islands was based on numerous empirical data from their natural history. However, today there is a modern discipline, evolutionary ecology, which seeks to address the ecological and evolutionary trends that animals and plants develop in oceanic island environments to achieve optimal ‘biological success’. During the last 35 years, we have conducted studies on some of the insular syndromes in the archipelagos of the Canaries and the Galápagos.
Manuel Nogales finished his PhD at the University of La Laguna (Tenerife, Canary Islands) in 1990. He was a lecturer at this University for 16 years (1988-2004) and has been a Full Professor with the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) since 2004. He found the "Island Ecology and Evolution Research Group", which has been classified as "Group A" by the Spanish Research Council (CSIC). His CV has focused on the evolutionary ecology of organisms that have evolved on oceanic islands, with a particular emphasis on animal-plant interactions and insular conservation. Although the Macaronesian Islands constitute the basis of most of his research, he has also worked in other oceanic islands, such as the Galápagos, Hawaii, the Seychelles, and the Mascarene Islands. He has supervised a total of 17 master’s degrees and 14 PhD and participated in 39 scientific projects. Since September 2016, he has been nominated as the CSIC Delegate in the Canaries.
[Host: David Gonçalves, Conservation Genetics and Wildlife Management - CONGEN]
Zoom Link (Passcode: 1122)
Zoom Link (Passcode: 1122)