bachelor in Biology, master at Zoology in Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (1998) and ph.d. in Zoology at Universidade de São Paulo - Ribeirão Preto (2003). Has experience in Zoology, focusing on Animal Behavior, acting on the following subjects: chemical ecology, sociobiology, Hymenoptera, Polistes, Vespidae and social insects. (Source: Lattes Curriculum)
| Articles published in Pesquisa FAPESP Magazine about the researcher: |
| El lenguaje químico de los insectos |
| Una intrusa entre las abejas |
| Stranger in the nest |
| Una intrusa entre las abejas |
| News published in Agência FAPESP Newsletter about the researcher |
| TITULO |
| Articles published in other media outlets (0 total): |
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| VEICULO: TITULO (DATA) |
| VEICULO: TITULO (DATA) |
There is an enormous variation in the cognitive complexity of animal species, and many studies show that ecological and social factors have great importance to explain such cognitive variation. Most studies about the cognitive evolution have been done on vertebrates, investigating morphological aspects of the brain, as well as the cognitive abilities of these animals, taking into consider…
The evolution of sociality in ants, bees and wasps is a prime example of a major transition in evolution, where individuals went to live in societies characterised by the presence of an advanced reproductive division of labour. In primitively eusocial species, the allocation to reproductive and nonreproductive roles in the colony is highly plastic, while in more advanced eusocial species,…
Social insects exemplify a major transition in evolution and show how cooperative organisms can reach higher levels of social organization. We want to gain a deeper understanding of the molecular regulation that drives the behavioural transitions in wasps. This project will integrate proximate mechanisms to the evolution of wasp sociality, by studying the ancestral origins of pre-social b…
Many ant species use a form of recruitment called 'tandem running', whereby an informed individual guides an uninformed nestmate to a resource. Tandem running is currently the only known example of 'teaching' in non-mammals and represents a promising behaviour to study the benefits of social information at both individual and colony level. This project proposes to use tandem running in an…
The evolution of sociality in insects is an example of a so-called "major transition in evolution", whereby previously solitary breeding insects went on to live in social groups characterized by the presence of an advanced reproductive division of labour. . This basic model, known as the "Ovarian Ground Plan Hypothesis" (OGPH), was later modified into the "Reproductive Ground Plan Hypothe…
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
The urbanization process has become increasingly significant in recent years, causing serious consequences on the environmental balance, such as the effects of heavy metals and air pollution. This process directly impacts the balance of the ecosystem. Some effects already observed are related to changes in the behavior and development of animals due to the neurotoxic potential of some con…
The social communication of the insects is largely mediated by chemical compounds, which are found in various exocrine glands secretions and at the cuticle surface (e.g., cuticular hydrocarbons, or CHCs). These chemical compounds are also utilized to mediate tasks and have a direct relationship between the individuals age and the function performed by them at the colony (age polyethism). …
Social insects are recognized by their efficiency on labor division between its members, and for this to happen, signaling mechanisms and sophisticated receptors are necessary. These decodify and transmit all information about the colony and the external environment to the brain. Social insects can be considered like "factories" of chemical compounds that are produced by exocrine glands a…
Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are ecologically dominant insects that use chemical cues and signals for recognition and communication. Despite their elaborated recognition system, several organisms called myrmecophiles, including agricultural pests, have relationships with ants ranging from beneficial interactions such as mutualism to exploitation and parasitism. These relationships are c…
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
Ants, due to their social habitat, compose one of the main groups of predator organisms in terrestrial ecosystems. Nevertheless, many groups of organisms can live in symbiosis with ants without being attacked (myrmecophily) with interactions varying from mutualism to parasitism. Among the arthropods, the beetles (Coleoptera) are probably the most diverse order of myrmecophilous insects. H…
Host-parasite interactions represent a widespread coevolutionary example in nature, with parasitism consisting of a selective force towards exploiting a host. Parasites induce mild to dramatic changes over their hosts, which in turn results in affecting the host's fitness. The behavioral and physiological effects of parasitic manipulation are well-studied. However, much less is known abou…
Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) can provide information about castes, age, reproductive status, and colony membership of social insects. In ants, CHCs seem to be useful to understand several social traits. These patterns can shed some light on social behavior and speciation in some groups of ants. Attina ants provide a good model of these evolutionary processes. In addition, the coevolution…
Social insects form colonies in which each individual perfoms different tasks, resulting in a self-organized system. In most of eusocial bees and wasps the division of labor among members of the colony occurs through age polyethism, in which younger workers perform tasks inside the nest and when getting older start activities out of the nest, mainly foraging. This complex organization nee…
(Only some records are available in English at this moment)
| 2 / 2 | Ongoing research grants |
| 17 / 14 | Completed research grants |
| 3 / 3 | Ongoing scholarships in Brazil |
| 21 / 17 | Completed scholarships in Brazil |
| 1 / 1 | Ongoing scholarships abroad |
| 5 / 5 | Completed scholarships abroad |
| 49 / 42 | All research grants and scholarships |
| Associated processes | |
CV Lattes
ORCID