The team

We have recently moved to Rey Juan Carlos University (Madrid, Spain) and are actively looking for students and fellows interested in working with us. Scroll to the bottom of the page and get in touch if our work and research systems are of your interest.

Our work draws on movement ecology, field experiments, ecological genomics, acoustic monitoring, physiology, stable-isotope ecology and many other methods. We value collaborative, open, fair and supportive science, and welcome people with different personal and academic backgrounds. Everyone in the group is committed to following our Diversity and Inclusion Manifesto.

Prospective fellows, MSc and BSc students, and interns are welcome to get in touch when their interests align with our research or methodological expertise.

Current researchers and students

Portrait of Pablo Capilla-Lasheras

Group leader · Ramón y Cajal Fellow

Pablo Capilla-Lasheras (he/his)

Global Change Research Institute · Rey Juan Carlos University, Madrid

Evolutionary ecologist studying how animals respond to human-induced environmental change, with a particular focus on migration, urbanisation and biological rhythms.

Full profile

MSc student

Alejandro Molinero

Pablo de Olavide University

Ale is investigating whether epigenetic potential could explain biological success in urban habitats. He is using genomics to quantify epigenetic potential in urban and non-urban populations of scops owl across Iberia

Co-supervised with Blanca Jimeno

MSc student

Lucas Pelta

University of Granada

Lucas is employing different technology (e.g., passive acoustic monitoring) and citizen sciene to detect non-migratory scops owls, with the final aim of determining if migratory drop off in the species is associated with living in human-altered habitats.

Co-supervised with Juan Diego Ibáñez-Álamo

Past members

  • Leonie Pries · BSc 2025 · University of Gothenburg Co-supervised with Barbara Helm
  • Isabel Fisher · MSc 2025 · Université Paris-Saclay · Swiss Ornithological Institute Co-supervised with Barbara Helm
  • Emma Poliakova · MSc 2023 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni
  • Mark Pitt · MSc 2022 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni and Jelle Boonekamp
  • Paddy McCleave · BSc 2022 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni
  • Andrew Doyle · BSc 2022 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni
  • Thomas MacGillavry · BSc 2022 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni
  • Rachel McLeod · MSc 2021 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni
  • Cara Cochrane · MSc 2020 · University of Glasgow Co-supervised with Davide Dominoni

Collaborators

Andrew YoungUniversity of Exeter, UK
Barbara HelmSwiss Ornithological Institute, Switzerland
Benito FuertesUniversity of Oviedo, Spain
Blanca JimenoPyrenean Institute of Ecology - CSIC, Spain
Davide DominoniUniversity of Glasgow, UK
Daniel Bustillo de la RosaBiodiversity Node
Juan Diego Ibáñez-ÁlamoUniversity of Granada, Spain
Pablo SalmónInstitute of Avian Research, Germany
Paul DufourSwiss Ornithological Institute, Switzerland