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I am currently a Ramón y Cajal researcher at the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC) and a member of the consolidated research group MedRecover. My research focuses on the impacts of global change on marine benthic ecosystems, with particular emphasis on benthic calcifying organisms, and features a pioneering approach to the historically understudied phylum Bryozoa.
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Antarctic Peninsula, 2016. Photo: Javier Cristobo.
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The overarching goal of my research is to analyze and anticipate the effects of global change on marine benthos, addressing both the impact of climate change and the role of plastic waste as vectors of dispersal. My work is structured around two main research lines: (i) the analysis of functional trait responses of calcifying organisms and their microbiomes to ocean warming and ocean acidification, including their potential use as paleoenvironmental indicators; and (ii) the characterization of taxonomic composition associated with substrates to detect changes induced by global change, with a specific focus on plastic debris as vectors for the dispersal of non-native species.
My scientific career spans from early training in biodiversity –encompassing the description of 21 new bryozoan species and research in benthic ecology– to a consolidated research profile in global change science. After completing my PhD at the University of Barcelona on polar benthic ecosystems, I undertook postdoctoral research at leading international institutions, including the Australian Antarctic Division, and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (Panama), where I incorporated paleoecological approaches to reconstruct long-term environmental change in coastal ecosystems. My research involved extensive fieldwork across polar, subpolar, tropical, and temperate regions, including five Antarctic campaigns, one sub-Antarctic expedition, and multiple coastal field campaigns. In parallel, I have been actively involved in science communication through the company Plàncton, Divulgació i Serveis Marins.
My trajectory has been recognized with three highly competitive talent-attraction fellowships (Juan de la Cierva-Incorporación, Beatriu de Pinós/MSCA-COFUND, and Ramón y Cajal).
As Principal Investigator, I have led research projects supported by national and European funding bodies (including two National and one Consolidación Investigadora projects), enabling the establishment of my own research group at ICM-CSIC and the training of doctoral, master’s, undergraduate, and technical staff.
My scientific career spans from early training in biodiversity –encompassing the description of 21 new bryozoan species and research in benthic ecology– to a consolidated research profile in global change science. After completing my PhD at the University of Barcelona on polar benthic ecosystems, I undertook postdoctoral research at leading international institutions, including the Australian Antarctic Division, and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (Panama), where I incorporated paleoecological approaches to reconstruct long-term environmental change in coastal ecosystems. My research involved extensive fieldwork across polar, subpolar, tropical, and temperate regions, including five Antarctic campaigns, one sub-Antarctic expedition, and multiple coastal field campaigns. In parallel, I have been actively involved in science communication through the company Plàncton, Divulgació i Serveis Marins.
My trajectory has been recognized with three highly competitive talent-attraction fellowships (Juan de la Cierva-Incorporación, Beatriu de Pinós/MSCA-COFUND, and Ramón y Cajal).
As Principal Investigator, I have led research projects supported by national and European funding bodies (including two National and one Consolidación Investigadora projects), enabling the establishment of my own research group at ICM-CSIC and the training of doctoral, master’s, undergraduate, and technical staff.
A new species of shrimp, Triacanthoneus blanca, was named after Dr. Blanca Figuerola by Arthur Anker, a world-renowned expert on caridean shrimps, in recognition of her contributions as a marine biologist and her expertise in bryozoan taxonomy.
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