Miguel Berdugo

Ph.D. student 2014 – 2017

Co-supervised byFernando Maestre,Santiago SoliveresandSonia Kéfi

My research aims at evaluating the long term effects of global climate change on dryland structure and multifunctionality.

I aim at contributing to the development of a theoretical framework for dryland dynamics which would fill the gaps of knowledge connecting strutural and functional characteristics of dryland ecosystems. In particular, I am interested in understanding how the biotic structure may influence ecosystem functioning, and how spatial vegetation patterns in drylands are related to ecosystem soil functioning in global drylands.In the next years, my Ph.D. project will focus on developping mathematical models to simulate ecosystem structure and functioning under climate change scenarios. I will espacially focus on the dynamics leading to catastrophic shifts of both ecosystem structure and functioning, and I will attempt to develop a comprehensive framework to develop tools able to predict those shifts.