Marisol Valverde Montellano

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at Cornell. My research focuses on freshwater soundscapes (i.e. the biological, geophysical and anthropogenic sounds at a given area), with a focus on fish sounds. For my Ph.D. I have been studying temperate lakes in the Adirondack Park, New York and tropical lakes in the Colombian and Brazilian Amazon. I am interested in understanding the relationship between acoustic diversity and fish biodiversity in freshwaters, as well as seasonal changes in the soundscapes.

Born and raised in Mexico, I have a passion for tropical ecosystems, as these are some of the most biodiverse places in terms of freshwater fishes worldwide. I completed my Bachelor of Science and Master of Science at McGill University, Canada, where I was part of the Neotropical Studies Program (NEO) and spent many months in Panama. Working in Lake Gatun, Panama, I discovered the world of Neotropical fishes and have since then been in love with tropical freshwaters. One of my favorite hobbies is biking – and particularly bike touring!