Biography

Alain started working ecology of coral reef fishes in 2003 supervised by Dr. Rodolfo Claro as part of his undergrad thesis at University of Havana. He obtained a B.S. in 2007 and worked as research assistant for two years in the Marine Biology Department of Institute of Oceanology, Cuba. In 2013, he received my M.S. at FIU with Dr. Ligia Collado-Vides and Deron Burkepile focusing on the seasonality of macroalgal recruitment on coral reefs and how herbivory and nutrient limitation affect macroalgal recruitment patterns. Alain finished his Ph.D. with The Pile in 2018. 

Research Area

Alain's dissertation research focused on the context-dependent nature of herbivore-algae interactions. He examined how factors such as structural complexity, sedimentation, and seasonality impact how herbivorous fishes can control algal community dynamics.