Dr. Ivonne Bejarano Rodriguez | American University of Sharjah
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Profile

College / Department

College of Arts and Sciences
Department of Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Sciences

Teaching areas

Biology, Environmental modeling, Management and conservation science.

Research areas

Environmental DNA, Coastal and marine ecosystems, Reef fishes, Coral reefs, Oyster beds, Mesophotic habitats, Spatial ecology, Marine biodiversity, Conservation and management.

Education

PhD, Biological Oceanography, University of Puerto Rico, United States, 2013
MS, Biological Oceanography, University of Puerto Rico, United States, 2006
BS, Marine Biology, Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Colombia, 2001

Professional experience

Assistant Professor Of Biology, Biology, Chemistry, And Environmental Sciences, American University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, 2018 - Present
Research Associate, Emirates Nature-WWF, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2018 - 2018
Marine Conservation Director, Emirates Marine Environmental Group, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2017 - 2018
Climate Change Project Manager, UNEP-RAC SPA, Spain, 2015 - 2017
Science Advisor, The Spanish National Research Council, National Museum of Natural History, Spain, 2015 - 2016
Science Advisor, UNESCO, Spain, 2014 - 2016
Knauss Fellow, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Washington DC, United States, 2014 - 2015
Lecturer, Sandwatch - Innovative Hands-on Project For Teachers, UNESCO, Puerto Rico Sea Grant College, Puerto Rico, United States, 2013 - 2013
Plankton Analyst, Aguirre Gasport, Tera Tech, Inc., Puerto Rico, United States, 2012 - 2013
Lecturer, Program Encounter With The Sea, NASA-Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortium & Sea Grant, Puerto Rico, United States, 2012 - 2013
Researcher & Data Analyst, NOAA Fisheries Service & Sea Ventures, Puerto Rico, United States, 2009 - 2013
Researcher & Scientific Diver, HJR Reefscaping, Puerto Rico, United States, 2008 - 2013
Lecturer, Mathematics And Science Alliance Projects, School Teachers Training Workshop, 2013 - 2013
Doctoral Researcher, University of Puerto Rico & NOAA, Puerto Rico, United States, 2007 - 2013
Fisheries Biologist, The Caribbean Fisheries and Management Council, Puerto Rico, United States, 2011 - 2012
Graduate Researcher, Department Of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico & Puerto Rico Department of Natural & Environmental Resources, PR, United States, 2003 - 2006
Teaching Assistant, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico, United States, 2002 - 2004
Teaching Assistant, Mayaguez Campus, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico, United States, 2002 - 2004
Field & Lab Biologist, CSA Group, Inc., PR, United States, 2002 - 2003
Undergraduate Researcher, Puerto Rastrojo NGO, Colombian Amazon, Colombia, 2000 - 2001

Memberships

Energy, Water and Sustainable Environment Research Center, EWSERC, April 2024
Sharjah Fish Resources Authority, Local, Scientific advisor, August 2023
Northeastern Arabia Reef Monitoring Network, Regional, May 2023
The Middle Eastern Marine Science Network, MEMS, Regional, May 2023
Reviewer/Referee for Galaxea, Journal of Coral Reef Studies, March 2022
Reviewer/Referee for Water, March 2022
Reviewer/Referee for Estuaries, Coastal and Shelf Science Journal, January 2021
Reviewer/Referee for Scientific Reports, Nature Research, January 2021
Reviewer/Referee for the Bulletin of Marine Sciences, January 2021
UAE Climate Change Research Network. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, CCRN, Local, October 2020
Reviewer Board member Diversity Journal-MDPI, September 2020
Reviewer/Referee for Estuaries, Coastal and Shelf Science Journal, 2020
Reviewer/Referee for Marine Ecology Progress Series, January 2020
Mideast Coral Reef Society, Regional, January 2019
Reviewer/Referee for Coral Reefs, January 2015

Contact

[email protected]
+971 6 515 2333

Dr. Ivonne Bejarano Rodriguez

Assistant Professor
PhD, University of Puerto Rico, United States

Ivonne Bejarano, Ph.D., is an expert in marine sciences and coastal and marine ecology. She is dedicated to the effective management, sustainable use, and conservation of marine resources, with a focus on protected and endangered habitats and wildlife, including commercially significant fishery species. Her research explores spatial ecology to enhance the integrated understanding of biodiversity, community dynamics, and conservation strategies. Dr. Bejarano has extensive local and international experience collaborating with academic institutions and policy and management agencies.

Publications

Ivonne Bejarano, Daniel Mateos-molina, Simon Pittman, Mona Moller, Marina Antonopoulou And Rima Jabado. Coastal lagoons in the United Arab Emirates serve as critical habitats for globally threatened marine megafauna., Marine Pollution Bulletin, February 2024
Ivonne Bejarano, Simon Pittman, Holly Kembrey, Fadi Yaghmour, Maria Del Pilar Blanco-parra, Daniel Mateos-molina And Rima Jabado. Fish-seascape associations within an offshore protected area in the Arabian Gulf, Marine Ecology
Ivonne Bejarano, Stephen Carpenter, Claire Evans, Simon Pittman, Marina Antonopoulou, Mona Moller, Daniel Mateos-molina, Himansu Das, Kate Peel And Konstantinos Stamoulis. Multi-habitat Carbon Stock Assessments to Inform Nature-based Solutions for Coastal Seascapes in Arid Regions., Frontiers In Marine Science, December 2023
Ivonne Bejarano. Coastal Lagoons (“khors) of the Emirates, 2023
Ivonne Bejarano, Fatin Samara And Sandra Knuteson. Oyster Beds and Reefs of the United Arab Emirates, 2023
Ivonne Bejarano. The Emirates at 2050, 2023
Stephen Carpenter, Claire Evans, Simon Pittman, Marina Antonopoulou, Ivonne Bejarano, Himansu Das, Mona Möller, Kate Peel, Fatin Samara, Kostantinos Stamoulis And Daniel Mateos-molina. Multi-habitat carbon stock assessments to inform nature-based solutions for coastal seascapes in arid regions, Frontiers In Marine Science, 1 December 2023
Ivonne Bejarano, Fatin Samara And Sandra Knuteson. Oyster beds and reefs of the United Arab Emirates, 1 November 2023
Ivonne Bejarano, Clare Fieseler, Nadia Al-mudaffar, Brian Helmuth, Alexandra Leitao And Nicholas Payson. Expanding ocean protection and peace: a window for science diplomacy in the Gulf., Royal Society Open Science, September 2023
Fatin Samara, Ivonne Bejarano, Daniel Mateos-molina, Mohamed Abouleish, Nadia Solovieva, Fadi Yaghmour, Tarig Ali And Maria Saburova. Environmental Assessment of Oyster Beds in the Northern Arabian Gulf Coast of the United Arab Emirates, Marine Pollution Bulletin
Delphine Rocklin, Irene Rojo, M Muntoni, D. Mateos-molina, Ivonne Bejarano, A. Calo, M. Russell, J. Garcia, F.c. Felix-hackradt, C.w. Hackradt And J.a. Garcia-charton. Fisheries regulation: Groupers management and conservation, 2022
Ivonne Bejarano. Coral reefs at Sir Bu Nair Island: An offshore refuge of Acropora in the southern Arabian Gulf, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2022
Ivonne Bejarano. Diplomacy for the world’s hottest sea., Science, 2022
Ivonne Bejarano. First record of the whitespotted grouper Epinephelus coeruleopunctatus (Teleostei: Epinephelidae) in the southern Arabian Gulf., Check List, 2022
Ivonne Bejarano. Oyster beds in the United Arab Emirates: Important fishing grounds in need of protection, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 2022
Rita Bento, Georgenes Cavalcante Segundo, Daniel Mateos-molina, Bernhard Riegl And Ivonne Bejarano. Recruitment and larval connectivity of a remnant Acropora community in the Arabian Gulf, United Arab Emirates, Coral Reefs, 2021
Ivonne Bejarano, Daniel Mateos-molina And Marina Antonopoulou. Applying an integrated approach to coastal marine habitat mapping in the north-western United Arab Emirates, Marine Environmental Research, 2020
Rita Bento, Daniel Molina, Ivonne Bejarano, Georgenes Cavalcante Segundo And Bernhard Riegl. Coral recruitment in Sir Bu Nair Marine Protect Area., Coral Reefs
Richard Appeldoorn, Monica Alfaro, David Ballantine, Ivonne Bejarano, Ru\'\iz, Hector J, Nikolaos Schizas, Wilford Schmidt, Clark Sherman And E Weil. Puerto Rico-Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems, 2019
Ivonne Bejarano, Yannick Pages, Aaron Bartholomew, Rima Jabado, Fadi Yaghmour And Daniel Matoes-molina. Commercial fishes in reef and near-reef habitats in Sir Bu Nair Island, UAE. Preliminary results.
Ivonne Bejarano, Daniel Mateos-molina, Rita Bento And . Coral recruitment in Sir Bu Nair Island. Preliminary results.
Dominic Andradi-brown, Mark Vermeij, Marc Slattery, Michael Lesser, Ivonne Bejarano, Richard Appeldoorn, Gretchen Goodbody-gringley, Alex Chequer, Joanna Pitt, Corey Eddy And Others. Large-scale invasion of western Atlantic mesophotic reefs by lionfish potentially undermines culling-based management, Biological Invasions, 2017
Ivonne Bejarano, Daniel Mateos-molina, Jose Garcia-charton And . Identification and streamlining of Climate Change Impact Indicators in Three Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI), 2017
Frederic Sinniger, Ivonne Bejarano, Marjorie Reaka, Heather Spalding And Ernesto Weil. Biodiversity of mesophotic coral ecosystems, 2016
Rs Appeldoorn, Dl Ballantine, Ivonne Bejarano, Ru\'\iz, Hj, Nv Schizas And E Weil. Mesophotic coral ecosystems examined - La Parguera, Puerto Rico, USA, 2016
D Andradi-brown, J Laverick, Ivonne Bejarano, T Bridge, Pl Colin, G Eyal, R Jones, S Kahng, J Reed, T Smith And Others. Threats to mesophotic coral ecosystems and management options, Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems—a Lifeboat For Coral Reefs, 2016
Delmis Alicea-segarra, Ivonne Bejarano And Brenda Soler. El arrecife de coral: Gu\'\ia educativa para maestros, 2016
Katie Flynn, Sean Griffin, Hanae Spathias, Hern\'andez-delgado, Edwin A, Ivonne Bejarano, Medina-mu\~niz, Jeiger L And Rodr\'\iguez, Pedro. 2016 Monitoring Report for Emergency Restoration following the T/V Port Stewart grounding in 2009 Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, 2016
Ivonne Bejarano And D Andradi-brown. Large-scale invasion of western Atlantic mesophotic reefs by lionfish potentially undermines culling-based management., Biological Invasions, 2016
Ivonne Bejarano, Richard Appeldoorn, David Ballantine, Milton Carlo, Michael Nemeth, Ernesto Otero, Francisco Pagan, Hector Ruiz, Nicholas Schizas, Clark Sherman And Ernesto Weil. Mesophotic coral ecosystems under anthropogenic stress: a case study at Ponce, Puerto Rico., Coral Reefs, 2016
C Sherman, W Schmidt, R Appeldoorn, Y Hutchinson, H Ruiz, M Nemeth, Ivonne Bejarano, Jj Motta And H Xu. Sediment dynamics and their potential influence on insular-slope mesophotic coral ecosystems, Continental Shelf Research, 2016
Evan Tuohy, Michael Nemeth, Ivonne Bejarano, Michelle Schaerer And Richard Appeldoorn. In situ tagging of Nassau grouper Epinephelus striatus using closed-circuit rebreathers at a spawning aggregation in Puerto Rico, Marine Technology Society Journal, 2015
Sch\"arer-umpierre, Michelle T, Daniel Mateos-molina, Richard Appeldoorn, Ivonne Bejarano, Hern\'andez-delgado, Edwin A, Richard Nemeth, Michael Nemeth, Vald\'es-pizzini, Manuel And Tyler Smith. Marine managed areas and associated fisheries in the US Caribbean, 2014
Segarra, Delmis Del C Alicea, Ivonne Bejarano, Diana Beltran, Jorge Maldonado And Brenda Figueroa. El manglar: gu\'\ia educativa para maestros, 2014
Ivonne Bejarano, Rs Appeldoorn And M Nemeth. Fishes associated with mesophotic coral ecosystems in La Parguera, Puerto Rico, Coral Reefs, 2014
Segarra, Delmis Del C Alicea, Torres, H\'ector J Ruiz, Ivonne Bejarano, Jorge Maldonado And Rodr\'\iguez, Diana M Beltran. Las praderas de hierbas marinas: gu\'\ia educative para maestros, 2014
Rodr\'\iguez, Ivonne Bejarano. Deep Reef Fishes off La Parguera Insular Slope, Puerto Rico, and their Connectivity with Shallow Reefs, 2013
Clark Sherman, Richard Appeldoorn, David Ballantine, Ivonne Bejarano, Milton Carlo, Doug Kesling, Michael Nemeth, Francisco Pagan, Hector Ruiz, Nv Schizas And Others. Exploring the mesophotic zone: Diving operations and scientific highlights of three research cruises across Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands, 2013
Ivonne Bejarano And Richard Appeldoorn. Seawater turbidity and fish communities on coral reefs of Puerto Rico, Marine Ecology Progress Series, 2013
Ivonne Bejarano. Deep reef fishes off La Parguera insular slope, Puerto Rico, and their connectivity with shallow reefs, 2013
Ivonne Bejarano, Michael Nemeth And Richard Appeldoorn. Use of mixed-gas rebreathers to access fish assemblages in mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCE) off La Parguera shelf-edge, Puerto Rico, 2011
C Sherman, M Nemeth, Ru\'\iz, H, Ivonne Bejarano, R Appeldoorn, Pag\'an, F, Sch\"arer, M And E Weil. Geomorphology and benthic cover of mesophotic coral ecosystems of the upper insular slope of southwest Puerto Rico, Coral Reefs, 2010
Clark Sherman, Richard Appeldoorn, Milton Carlo, Michael Nemeth, Ru\'\iz, Hector And Ivonne Bejarano. Use of technical diving to study deep reef environments in Puerto Rico, 2009
Ivonne Bejarano, Richard Appeldoorn, Michael Nemeth, Clark Sherman And Milton Carlo. Preliminary characterization of the deep reef fish communities and their connectivity with shallow water reefs in southwest Puerto Rico, 2008
Ivonne Bejarano And Ivonne . Diet and reproduction of the main fish species from the Mesay river (Colombian Amazon region) during the flooding season, Revista De Biologia Tropical, 2006
Ivonne Bejarano, Blanco, Mar\'ia Del Pilar And Mojica, Jos\'e Iv\'an. The fish community of Mesay river during high level water period (Caqueta, Colombian Amazon), Caldasia, 2006
Bejarano-rodr\'\iguez, Ivonne. Relationships between reef fish communities, water and habitat quality on coral reefs, 2006
Ivonne Bejarano And Blanco, Mar\'\ia Del Pilar. Distribucion y estructura de la comunidad ictica del rio Mesay, durante el periodo de maxima inundacion, en el Parque Nacional Natural Serrania Chiribiquete (Amazonia colombiana). Trabajo de grado, Universidad de Bogota Jorge Tadeo Lozano. Bogota, 2001
A Arriaga, Ivonne Bejarano And M Blanco. Contribucion al conocimiento del recurso tiburon explotado artesanalmente en las sub-areas 3 y 4 del departamento del Magdalena (Colombia), durante el periodo de agosto a noviembre de 1999, Seminario De Investigaci\'on. Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Santa Marta, 1999

Conference Presentations

Environmental and Chemical Characterization of Hawksbill Sea Turtles in a Hotspot Nesting Area in the Arabian Gulf, Uae Climate Change Research Network Second Annual Conference, 2023
Environmental Characterization of Hawksbill Sea Turtle Nests in a Hotspot Nesting Area in the Arabian Gulf, Seventh International Conference On Water, Energy And Environment (icwee/7), 2023
Coastal Lagoons (Khors), A Celebration Of The Natural History Of The Emirates, December 2022
Oyster Beds., A Celebration Of The Natural History Of The Emirates., December 2021
Sharks, rays, and coral reef fish communities in a remote long-standing MPA in the Arabian Gulf: An assessment using baited remote underwater videos., Accepted For Oral Presentation In The International Coral Reef Symposium 2021, July 2021
Sir Bu Nair Island, one of the last coral and fish refuge in the Arabian/Persian Gulf, Accepted For Oral Presentation In The International Coral Reef Symposium 2021, July 2021
Corals in Sir Bu Nair island, UAE., “coral Innovation Lab. Our Reefs, Our Future”, 2020
Fishes in Sir Bu Nair Island., Sir Bu Nair Marine Protected Area Workshop, 2020
A pilot study of coral recruitment in Sir Bu Nair Marine Protected Area, UAE, Coral Conservation In The Arabian Gulf 2020, October 2020
Commercial Fishes in Sir Bu Nair Island, UAE. Preliminary Results., Arabian Coral Reefs Conference, 2019
Coral and benthic community settlement in Sir Bu Nair Island, UAE., Arabian Coral Reefs Conference., 2019

Grants and sponsorships

Grant, AUS FRG21-M: Development of a Mangrove Forests Monitoring System: Use of Multisource Remote Sensing Data and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Building a Geodatabase of the UAE Mangroves (1980s-date), AUS, 2021 - 2024
Grant, AUS FRG22-Comprehensive: Decoding Biodiversity of Coastal Lagoons in the UAE: The Use of eDNA to Inform Management, AUS FRG22-Comprehensive, June 2022 - May 2024
Grant, A Multidisciplinary Study of Oyster Beds as Bioindicators of Current Environmental and Societal Challenges in Coastal Areas of the UAE, American University of Sharjah, 20 May 2019 - 31 May 2024
Sponsored Research, Blue carbon accounting- Project Nature-Based Solution, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2022 - 2023
Grant, CAS-URG22 Undergraduate Research Grant “Environmental Characterization of Hawksbill Sea Turtle Nests in a Hotspot Nesting Area in the Arabian Gulf (2022-23)", American University of Sharjah, November 2022 - May 2023
Sponsored Research, Nesting ecology of marine turtle populations in the protected Area of Sir Bu Nair Island (SBN), in the UAE, EPAA, January 2021 - December 2022
Grant, Extension for the project “A Multidisciplinary Study of Oyster Beds as Bioindicators of Current Environmental and Societal Challenges in Coastal Areas of the UAE”, Sharjah Research Foundation Award FRA., 2020 - 2022
Sponsored Research, Innovative use of remote technology to assess macrofauna in coastal ecosystems, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2019 - 2022
Grant, AUS Open Access Grant 2022, AUS, December 2021
Grant, Faculty professional Development Grant, AUS
Sponsored Research, Pearl of Sharjah- Benthic communities in Sir Bu Nair island, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2019 - 2020
Sponsored Research, Pearl of Sharjah- Coral recruitment in Sir Bu Nair island, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2019 - 2020
Sponsored Research, Pearl of Sharjah- Reef communities in Sir Bu Nair island, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2019 - 2020
Grant, AUS Seed Grant, AUS, 9 December 2018 - 31 December 2020
Sponsored Research, Pearl of Sharjah- Baited Remote Underwater Video for Fish Surveys in Sir Bu Nair island, Emirates Nature-WWF, 2019

Awards and Honors

CAS-URG 24 Research Project, AUS, June 2024
CAS-URG 24 Research Project, AUS, March 2024
AUS FRG 22-Comprehensive. 2022-2024. Decoding Biodiversity of Coastal Lagoons in the UAE: The Use of eDNA to Inform Management., AUS, 2022
AUS Open Access Grant 2022, AUS, 2022
Second Place Award in Best Scientific Research Project in ICWEE/7, Seventh International Conference on Water, Energy and Environment (ICWEE/7), Environmental Characterization of Hawksbill Sea Turtle Nests in a Hotspot Nesting Area in the Arabian Gulf. Second place award., 24 November 2022
AUS FRG 21-M. 2021-2024. Development of a Mangrove Forests Monitoring System: Use of Multisource Remote Sensing Data and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Building a Geodatabase of the UAE Mangroves (1980s-date)., AUS, 2021
AUS Faculty Professional Development Grant, AUS, June 2021
Sharjah Research Academy Award FRA: 2020-2022, Sharjah Research Academy, 2020
AUS FRG-Large. 2019-2023. A Multidisciplinary Study of Oyster Beds as Bioindicators of Current Environmental and Societal Challenges in Coastal Areas of the UAE, AUS, 2019
AUS CAS Seed Grant, AUS, 2018
Google Outreach Training Fellowship, Google’s Sydney Headquarters., 1 October 2014
Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration., 1 February 2014
6th World Fisheries Congress Travel Grant, World Fisheries Congress, 1 May 2012
Graduate Research Scholarship-CCRI & NOAA, Caribbean Coral Reef Institute, 1 January 2012
59th Gulf and Caribbean Institute (GCFI) Meeting Travel Award, GCFI, 1 October 2008
Caribbean Coral Reef Institute Travel Grant, Caribbean Coral Reef Institute, 1 June 2008
ASLO 2006 Summer Meeting Travel Award, ASLO, 1 June 2006
Graduate Research Scholarship-NOAA, NOAA/DNER-PR, 1 January 2006
Smithsonian's National Zoological Parks Conservation and Research Center Fellowship, Smithsonian Institution, 1 January 2005

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