Maria Morell, PhD-Curriculum Vitae

Current employment

• Since Nov 2019: Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research (University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover), Germany. Director of the institute: Prof. Prof. h.c. Dr. Ursula Siebert

Previous employment

• Jun 2017- Sept 2019: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute for Neurosciences of Montpellier (INSERM U1051), France. Group of: Dr. Jean-Luc Puel
• Nov 2018-Mar 2019: Maternity leave
• Oct 2013 – May 2017: Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Zoology Department, University of British Columbia, Canada. Group of: Dr. Robert Shadwick and Dr. Stephen Raverty.
• Apr-Oct 2013: Maternity leave
• Sep 2012 –Feb 2013: Associate researcher at the Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics, Technical University of Catalonia, UPC-Barcelona Tech, Spain. Group of:  Dr. Michel André
• Sep 2007-May 2012: PhD student, Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics, Technical University of Catalonia, UPC-Barcelona Tech, Spain.  Main PhD supervisor:  Dr. Michel André. PhD co-supervisor: Dr. Marc Lenoir (Institute for Neurosciences of Montpellier, INSERM U1051, France)
• Sep 2005- Sep 2007: Master student, Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics, Technical University of Catalonia, UPC-Barcelona Tech, Spain. Supervisor:  Dr. Michel André

Education

• 2024: Habilitation in Zoology. University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Germany
• 2007-2012: PhD in Marine Science. Technical University of Catalonia, Spain.
  • Dissertation title: Ultrastructural analysis of odontocete cochlea
• 2005-2007: MSc in Marine Science. Technical University of Catalonia, Spain.
  • Theses: Comparative morphometry of odontocete ears through computerized tomography
• 1997-2002: BSc in Biology. University of Barcelona, Spain

Awards

• 2017-2019: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Post-doctoral Fellowship (751284-H2020-MSCA-IF-2016)
• 2017: Vivien Srivastava Child-care Stipend for Women Post-doctoral Fellows, Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia, Canada
• 2015: Travel award from the Association for Research in Otolaryngology
• 2015: Postdoctoral Travel Award, Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia, Canada
• 2014: Best oral presentation award at the UBC Post-Doctoral Association research day, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
• 2012: Best short presentation award, 26th European Cetacean Society Conference, Ireland
• 2011: PAS Travel and Research award 2010, AGAUR, Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain
• 2010: PAS-UPC International Travel and Research award, Technical University of Catalonia (UPC)

Main research areas

• Hearing in marine mammals
• Potential effects of man-made noise on hearing in marine mammals
• Inner ear ultrastructure
• Convergent evolution

 Membership of Scientific Societies and Expert Groups

• Association for Research in Otolaryngology
• Society for Marine Mammalogy
• European Cetacean Society
• 2025- : Member of ASCOBANS working group on Unusual Mass Stranding Events
• 2022: Member of the Experts elicitation workshop on auditory injury (Funding: UBA, Unwelt Bundesamt, Germany's central environmental authority)
• 2022- : Member of the ASCOBANS Offshore Renewable Energy Working Group
• 2022- : Member of the ASCOBANS Nord Stream gas leak Working Group
• 2021- : Member of the Joint Noise Working Group of CMS, ACCOBAMS and ASCOBANS (JNWG)
• 2021- : Member of the group of experts on Munition in the Sea (JPI Oceans)
• 2020- : Member of the Intersessional Working Group on Beaked Whales of ASCOBANS
• 2016: Member of the bottlenose dolphin Unusual Stranding Event during major training exercise group of experts
• 2012: Member of the pilot whale mass stranding in Scotland group of experts

Other Committees 

• 2024: Member of the Scientific Committee of the European Cetacean Society
• Member of the examining committee of the PhD student Ksenia Orekhova (University of Padova, Italy)
• 2022: Member of the final exam committee of the Master student Laura Rojas (National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico)
• 2020: Pre-examiner of the PhD candidate Itamar Tsur (University of Helsinki)
• 2020: Member of the final exam committee of the Master student Gabriela Colombini (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte Centro de Biociências, Brazil)
• 2018: Member of the evaluation committee for the PhD candidate Mickael Mourlam (Institute of the Evolutionary Sciences Montpellier, ISEM, CNRS)
• 2016: Member of the UBC post-doctoral travel fellowship committee

Reviewer of the following journals

• Scientific Reports
• Frontiers in Neuroanatomy
• Journal of Morphology
• Aquatic Mammals
• Applied Acoustics
• Integrative Zoology

 Projects

A list of projects

Publications

Complete list of publications..