Personnel

Upon arrival at the University of Puerto Rico in 1981, Dr. Ackerman discovered a forgotten collection of perhaps 5000 plants, all of which were vouchers for ecological studies by Prof. Michael Byer. Curation processes began and the collection grew rapidly to the present day, primarily through the activities lead by Ackerman, Frank Axelrod, Charlotte Taylor, and Fabiola Areces to become the largest herbarium on the island. Photo credit: Thrity Vakil.

Favorite taxa: the orchid family (Orchidaceae)

Dr. Areces is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the herbarium's day-to-day operations. This includes processing incoming specimens, coordinating digitization efforts, and arranging loans and exchanges with other institutions. She also assists students and researchers with plant identification and collaborates on a variety of plant-related projects.

Dr. Ortiz is an evolutionary biologist and systematist whose research integrates museum collections, fieldwork, taxonomy, genetics, and natural history to study the evolution, diversity, biogeography, and ecology of organisms, especially spiders and other arthropods.

Favorite taxa: the tarantula family (Theraphosidae)

​Colombian biologist Master’s and PhD in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico Río Piedras Campus. Dr. Herrera Montes is interested in understanding how human activities influence natural ecosystems and animal biodiversity. Besides biology, Dr. Herrera loves history, so her work at the Museum allows her to join two passions.

Favorite taxa: herpetofauna (classes Amphibia and Reptilia)

Natalie Rojas Guzmán works as a technician for the Zoology laboratory on campus. She also provides assistance with supervising research students and maintaining the museum collections. Natalie has conducted research in herpetology, particularly field census of amphibians such as Puerto Rico's native coquís.

Favorite taxa: the coquís genus (Eleutherodactylus)

Samari A. Betancourt García is pursuing a doctoral degree in biology with a specialization in ecology, evolution, and systematics. Her research applies anatomy, ecology, and evolution to answer questions of manatee biogeography and conservation. She performs curatorial duties at the Museum, especially with the mammals osteological collection, and assists in outreach activities and the supervision of undergraduate research students.

Favorita taxa: the mammals class (Mammalia)

Roberto Martínez-Rivera works as a research teaching assistant mentoring undergraduate students through research projects built around the collections. In this role, he guides students from developing their questions to working with specimens and data, an experience that connects museum-based research with the field ecology. As a PhD candidate in the Biology Department, he uses passive acoustic monitoring to study freshwater soundscapes in tropical streams of Puerto Rico, examining how the sounds of fish, aquatic insects, and decapods vary across daily cycles, temperature, and land-use gradients. Through this work, he tests both the potential and the limitations of ecoacoustic tools, including acoustic indices, to assess stream biodiversity and ecological health. Roberto is also interested in the mechanisms behind fish sound production and in how sampling design shapes what we can reliably detect.

Favorite taxa: the damselfly and dragonfly order (Odonata)

Verónica I. López García is responsible for assisting in curatorial duties; including the collection of specimens, pressing, drying, mounting, and labeling specimens. This includes providing assistance in the updating of the Flora Virtual de la Estación Biológica El Verde, providing assistance with visitors in accessing collections and assisting in outreach educational activities in the herbarium, elsewhere in on-campus and off-campus events.

Favorite taxa: the grasses family (Poaceae)

Dr. Merced works as Assistant Professor at the Biology Department of the University of Puerto Rico - Mayagüez Campus and curates the Bryophytes Collection at the Río Piedras Campus Herbarium.