Esther Murciano
University of Granada, Spain
Biography
Esther Murciano completed an MSc in the year 2006 in Natural Protected Areas at Fernando González Bernáldez Interuniversity Foundation (Complutense University of Madrid, Autonomous University of Madrid, and University of Alcala) with a Master’s thesis on the influence of logging on forest raptors, in an area maintaining one of the largest black vulture colonies in Spain. In 2012, she completed an MSc in Conservation, Management and Restoration of Biodiversity at the University of Granada. Her Master’s thesis studying the effects of changes in land uses on dung beetles in an arid area of Southern Spain was very positively rated, and obtaining financial support from National Museum of Natural History in order to continue with her research. She has been collaborating with the Doñana Biological Station and Carlos III Institute studying bats, and with the National Museum of Natural History in a research about red-billed chough. She is very interested in research on the benefits and impacts of different human uses on biodiversity conservation, especially on wildlife. During the last four years, she has spent most of the time in Africa working on conservation and ecotourism projects. Currently, she aimed to continue her scientific career with a PhD on beetle populations associated with livestock systems in arid environments in Africa.