Name: Luca Caminiti

Position: PhD Candidate

Supervisor/s: Aaron Lim, Paul Holloway

Office: Research Office, Ground Floor, Department of Geography

Email Address:

Biography

I completed an MSc in Marine Science in 2019 at the Università di Genova, where I focused my thesis on developing and optimizing an eDNA metabarcoding protocol to survey Elasmobranch diversity.

Following this, I worked as a Research technician at research institutes such as the CIBIO research centre and the CCMAR Institute, where I significantly strengthened my knowledge in the field of biogeography and population genetics. These roles allowed me to become an independent laboratory researcher, gaining substantial expertise in molecular genetic techniques and fieldwork methodologies.

More recently, I participated in two oceanographic campaigns in the Celtic Sea, organized by the Marine Institute and University College Cork. These expeditions strengthened my interest in deep-sea ecosystem dynamics, particularly on cold-water coral reefs (CWC).

Research

My PhD project will focus, through a multidisciplinary approach, on studying cold-water coral morphology and growth dynamics. Using a Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry workflow, I will generate high-resolution 3D models of CWC frameworks. By integrating these models with analyses of allogenic environmental parameters, I aim to identify the key drivers influencing CWC morphology and development across spatial and temporal scales.

Publications

1. de la Hoz Schilling, C.; Jabado, R.W.; Veríssimo, A.; Caminiti, L.; Sidina E.; Serrão E.A. eDNA metabarcoding reveals a rich but threatened and declining elasmobranch community in West Africa’s largest marine protected area, the Banc d’Arguin. Conserv. Genet. 25, 805–821 (2024).
2. Frade, D.G.; Neiva, J.; Martínez-Garrido J.; Davison, A.; Caminiti, L.; Pearson, G.A.; Serrão, E.A. Not regionally extinct: Rediscovery of Ruppia drepanensis in Portugal, the westernmost range edge in Europe. Aquat. Bot. 199, (2025).