Casandra Gálvez

I am a veterinarian and currently a PhD student in Mexico. I have always been interested in wildlife health, because it reflects a global scenario of our ecosystems reality. For some years I worked with Guadalupe fur seal health, applying different indicators (hematological, pathological, microbiological, and morphometrical) through interdisciplinary collaborations from Mexico, New Zealand, and EE.UU.

For me, morphometric analysis (body condition) acts as a health indicator over time due to their sensibility to natural and anthropogenic factors, such as global warming food availability, habitat disturbance and diseases. Vulnerable populations like Guadalupe fur seal, can be more sensitive to some alterations due to their restricted distribution and abundance. Although it`s an isolated population, it is evident that warmer oceanic condition could significantly impact the entire population. The impact of warm conditions on neonatal fur seal body mass was assessed during three consecutive breeding seasons (2014 to 2016) in Guadalupe Island, B.C., finding a negafive effect on individuals body mass. Due to the fact that San Benito archipelago is under recolonization by Guadalupe fur seal young individuals, their age could make them more sensitive to environmental changes, affecting their feeding habits, body weight, survival, and hence the population recovery.

January 2016