Dr Cecilia Villacorta Rath ~ Research Officer

Cecilia is passionate about using genetic tools towards the sustainable management of marine and freshwater resources. She is currently working on the Northern Australia eDNA Program at TropWATER. She is trailing field methods and conducting laboratory experiments testing the persistence and detectability of eDNA of an array of species of conservation and management significance.

Cecilia has previously worked in a wide variety of research topics, ranging from larval fish and seagrass ecology to invertebrate genomics. At James Cook University she pursued MSc in Marine Biology studying the factors affecting growth during early life stages of a reef-associated pelagic fish. She then worked for the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation of Queensland conducting seagrass monitoring along the northern and central Queensland coast. In 2013 Cecilia moved to Hobart to start a PhD at the University of Tasmania. Using next-generation sequencing (NGS) Cecilia investigated the patterns of larval dispersal of the Southern rock lobster in southeast Australia.

Experience

• 2018 to present - Research Officer, James Cook University (Australia)
• 2013 to 2018 - PhD, University of Tasmania (Australia)
• 2011 to 2012 - Research Assistant, James Cook University (Australia)
• 2008 to 2011 - MSc, James Cook University (Australia)
• 2006 to 2008 - MScAppSci, James Cook University (Australia)
• 1999 to 2004 - BSc, Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina (Peru)

Research Disciplines

• Genetics (0604)
• Ecology (0602)
• Ecological Applications (0501)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Fisheries - Wild Caught (8302)
• Control of Pests, Diseases and Exotic Species (9604)
• Ecosystem Assessment and Management (9605)

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Huerlimann R, Cooper M, Edmunds R, Villacorta-Rath C, Le Port A, Robson H, Strugnell J, Burrows D and Jerry D (in press) Enhancing tropical conservation and ecology research with aquatic environmental DNA methods: an introduction for non-environmental DNA specialists. Animal Conservation, , DOI:10.1111.acv.12583.
• Villacorta Rath C, Adekunle A, Edmunds R, Strugnell J, Schwarzkopf L and Burrows D (in press) Can environmental DNA be used to detect first arrivals of the cane toad, Rhinella marina, into novel locations? Environmental DNA, , DOI:10.1002/edn3.114.
• Silva C, Villacorta-Rath C, Woodings L, Murphy N, Green B, Hartmann K, Gardner C, Bell J and Strugnell J (2019) Advancing our understanding of the connectivity, evolution and management of marine lobsters through genetics. Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 29 (3), pp. 669-687, DOI:10.1007/s11160-019-09573-z.
• Souza C, Murphy N, Villacorta-Rath C, Woodings L, Ilyushkina I, Hernandez C, Green B, Bell J and Strugnell J (2017) Efficiency of ddRAD target enriched sequencing across spiny rock lobster species (Palinuridae: Jasus). Scientific Reports, 7 (1), Article: 6781, DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-06582-5.
• Villacorta-Rath C, Ilyushkina I, Strugnell J, Green B, Murphy N, Doyle S, Hall N, Robinson A and Bell J (2016) Outlier SNPs enable food traceability of the southern rock lobster, Jasus edwardsii. Marine Biology, 163 (11), Article: 223, pp. 1-11, DOI:10.1007/s00227-016-3000-1.
• Collier C, Villacorta-Rath C, Van Dijk K, Takahashi M and Waycott M (2014) Seagrass proliferation precedes mortality during hypo-salinity events: a stress-induced morphometric response. PLoS ONE, 9 (4), Article: e94014, pp. 1-11, DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0094014.

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