Dr. Vivianne Solis-Weiss

Dr. Solis-Weiss is a Senior Researcher (Titular C) with 30 years of seniority, Professor, former Head of the Department of "Sistemas Oceanicos y Costeros" (Coastal and Oceanic Systems) and present Head of the Laboratory of "Ecology and Biodiversity of Marine Invertebrates" at the Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. She is a member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences and a National Researcher level 3 (the highest researcher level in the University). She has 78 research papers and several book chapters published mostly on polychaetes (taxonomy: 39 new species of polychaetes described), plus benthic ecology of macroinvertebrates and coastal management. She is co-editor of a book on Oceanographic Research Methods for graduate students. Her Databases on polychaetes are available on the World Wide Web (Conabio site). She is the creator and curator responsible for the "Coleccion Nacional de Anelidos Poliquetos", the largest scientific collection in the world of Mexican polychaetes, and has participated in 40 research expeditions (33 as Head of them) to the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific and Mexican Caribbean and one to Clipperton atoll in the UNAM R/V`s "Justo Sierra" and "El Puma". Dr. Solis-Weiss was the administrative and scientific head of the Mexican research vessels "Justo Sierra" and "El Puma" in 1991-1992. The habitats in which she has carried out scientific research work on Mexican waters (Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean and Mexican Pacific) include: mangroves, seagrass beds, corals, sandy and rocky beaches, coastal lagoons, soft bottoms of the continental shelf, offshore oil extraction zones and the deep sea (down to 3000 m), including hydrothermal vents. She has also worked in France, the US and Italy, and is fluent in English, French, Italian and Spanish. She has directed 41 theses at the three levels (B.S., M.S. and Ph.D.).