Merino Rodriguez Santiago

Research

My line of research has been always linked to the study of the host-parasite interactions. These studies not only have focused on the effects of parasites on the fitness of their hosts
and therefore its value as a selective force in nature, but also on the evolutionary strategies of transmission of different species of parasites. Throughout my career I have studied
various host-parasite systems in populations of wild animals including mammals, reptiles and mainly birds, as well as their ectoparasites and endoparasites, mainly blood parasites.
This has allowed me to obtain an overview about the particularities of different systems under study, which include very different life cycles. The team that I lead has always been
characterized by used experimental approaches for the study of the host-parasite relationship in wild populations. We have been pioneers in the study of some variables of interest in
these populations, such as heat stress proteins as parasitic stress indicators, and we have been pioneers in experimental studies of parasite load modification in blood parasites in wild
populations. I've also contributed to discover and describe new species to science.