Dr F.P. Leiva Leiva (Félix) BSc

I am an eco-physiologist interested in understanding how terrestrial and aquatic ectotherms respond to increasing temperature, low oxygen levels, and salinity changes, among other environmental perturbations. To do so, I am using experimental and comparative approaches that allow testing the generality of various hypotheses in physiology, ecology and evolution. During my undergraduate studies in Chile, I performed physiological studies on crustaceans. My model species was the decapod Neotrypaea uncinata, a ghost shrimp inhabitant of intertidal burrows where low oxygen levels are frequent during the low tide. During my doctorate, I am using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as model species to test the trade-off between surviving acute heat stress and chronic heat stress due to differences in cell architecture (cell size and membrane fluidity).
Before starting my PhD, my work involved the study of the population dynamic of commercial importance fishes: southern hake, ling, anchovy, southern sprat, pomfrets and Antarctic toothfish. I was involved in various projects to study what these fishes eat and how they move across different areas along the Chilean coast.