2026
A demographic framework for assessing population vulnerability to contrasting perturbation regimes
bioRxivpreprint
Theoretical & computational ecologist
Àlex
Giménez-Romero
I am interested in understanding how ecological systems respond to perturbations and environmental change. To do so, I combine mechanistic models and complex-systems approaches with large-scale ecological, climatic and Earth-observation data.
Juan de la Cierva Fellow · CEAB-CSIC
Visiting researcher · ISEM, University of Montpellier
Based atCEAB-CSICBlanes · Spain
Research
Ecological dynamics across scales
My research spans very different ecological systems—from communities and plant epidemics to coral reefs and seagrass meadows—but is guided by a common question: how do structure, interactions and environmental forcing shape ecological dynamics and resilience?. I explore these questions with four interconnected research programmes, from mathematical mechanisms to global ecological observation.
01Stability & resilienceHow does ecological structure determine whether populations and communities absorb, amplify or reorganize after perturbation?↗02Climate & diseaseHow do climate, host biology and vector dynamics interact to determine when and where disease can emerge?↗03Spatial ecologyWhat can ecosystem geometry, fragmentation and self-organized spatial patterns tell us about the processes that generate resilience?↗04AI & remote sensingHow can machine learning and Earth-observation data turn sparse ecological observations into robust, transferable maps?↗
Climate-driven disease
From transmission mechanisms to emerging risk
I combine mechanistic epidemiological models with climate and geospatial data to understand when vector-borne plant diseases can establish, spread and become a management concern.
Explore this research →Stability & resilience
How ecological structure changes the response to perturbation
Recent work links demographic and network structure to stability, response diversity and vulnerability under different perturbation regimes.
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Spatial ecology
Patterns as ecological information
From coral-reef geometry to seagrass fragmentation and dryland vegetation, I study whether spatial organization reveals general ecological processes and resilience.
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AI & remote sensing
Extending ecological observation across scales
I combine satellite imagery, geospatial data and deep learning to build transferable ecological maps and extract information that would be difficult to observe directly at large spatial or temporal scales.
Explore this research →Selected publications
Recent work
A curated selection from the complete publication record.
2026
A mechanistic framework linking within-host pathogen progression to vector-mediated transmission under climate forcing
bioRxiv · 2026.07.01.735761preprint
2026
Ecological networks balance connectivity with flexibility to perturbations
bioRxiv · 2026.06.12.731932preprint
2026
2026
Intermittent precipitation and spatial Allee effects drive irregular vegetation patterns in semiarid ecosystems
biorxiv · 2026.02.05.703943preprint
Tools & data
Research made explorable
Interactive resources that connect models and data to questions outside the analysis pipeline.
Interactive risk atlas
Pierce's disease risk
Explore climatic suitability and epidemic risk for Pierce’s disease of grapevines across spatial scales.
Open tool ↗
Decision-support tool
Philaenus phenology
Predict egg hatching of Philaenus spumarius using a degree-day model developed for the main European vector of Xylella fastidiosa.
Open tool ↗Ecological dashboard
CAMELE
Explore deep-learning predictions of Mediterranean seagrass and other benthic habitats from high-resolution satellite imagery.
Open tool ↗Science beyond papers
Outreach & public communication
I consider communication part of the scientific process. I write and speak about my research for broader audiences mainly at The Conversation.
2026 · The Conversation · Ciencia + Tecnología
Los arrecifes de coral parecen distintos alrededor del mundo pero siguen las mismas reglas matemáticas
Coral reef macroecology
2026 · The Conversation · Medioambiente
El calentamiento del mar acorrala a la posidonia, pulmón del Mediterráneo
Marine warming & seagrass