Tuco-Tucos

lt;p>Thales Renato Ochotorena de Freitas: Full Professor, Department of Genetics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). BSc degree in Biological Sciences (1977), MSc (1980) and PhD (1990) in Genetics and Molecular Biology, all from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Visiting scholar at Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California-Berkeley (1996-1997) and visiting researcher at Laboratoire d'Écologie Alpine, University of Grenoble (2013). Founder and former president of the Brazilian Society of Mastozoology.  Member of the Brazilian Society of Genetics. Life Member of the American Society of Mammalogists, and member of the Species Survival Commission (2017-2020). Head of the Cytogenetics and Evolution Laboratory, coordinates research projects in the area of Animal Genetics, with emphasis on several topics such as phylogeography, conservation genetics, and evolution. Special interest in studying species of the class Mammalia, mainly evolution and conservation of the genus Ctenomys, although has already worked with other orders of mammals (Cetacea, Chiroptera, Carnivora). Published (Aug. 2018) 150 journal articles and advised 58 MSc and 39 PhD students.

Gislene Lopes Gonçalves:  Associate Researcher at Department of Genetics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Brazil and Universidad de Tarapacá, Chile. BSc degree in Biological Sciences (2004) from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, MSc (2006) in Zoology and PhD (2011) in Genetics and Molecular Biology, both from Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Visiting scholar at Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University (2009-2010). Postdoctoral researcher (2012-2016) in Genetics and Molecular Biology (PPGBM) and Zoology (PPGBAN) at Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Interested in characterizing diversity at specific and phylogenetic levels, to understand the processes that promote differentiation, and the genetic basis of adaptative traits in mammals, either in wild or domesticated species. Coordinates projects in the broad area of Animal Genetics with emphasis on evolutionary genetics and collaborates with several research groups. Co-advises undergraduate and graduate students. Referee of several international journals that include zoology and evolutionary scopes. Member of the American Society of Mammalogists and Society for the Study of Evolution.  

Renan Maestri: Adjunct Professor, Department of Ecology, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). BSc degree in Biological Sciences from Unochapecó (2011), MSc degree in Ecology from URI-Erechim (2013), and PhD in Ecology from UFRGS (2017). Visiting researcher at The Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USA (2014-2015), and postdoctoral researcher at the Graduate Program in Animal Biology, UFRGS (2017-2018). Since 2018, teaches and advises students in the Graduate Programs in Ecology and Animal Biology of UFRGS, and coordinates the Laboratory of Ecomorphology and Macroevolution at the Department of Ecology, UFRGS. Interested in the areas of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology, and Biogeography, comprehending the following topics: morphological evolution, macroevolution, macroecology of complex phenotypes, comparative methods and geometric morphometry, in summary, ecological and evolutionary aspects responsible for the phenotypic diversification of current groups. Reviewer for several journals in these topics (including Evolution, Journal of Evolutionary Biology, Journal of Biogeography, Global Ecology, and Biogeography).