Octavio Aburto

Octavio Aburto obtained his Marine Biology degree from the Universidad Autonomy de Baja California Sur in 1995, and was a professor at the same university from 1997 to 2003. In 1998, he became the director of the Reef Fauna Project, and has been the Mexican principal researcher for several scientific and fishery policies grants, funded by Mexican and international organizations. Octavio has finished his PhD at the Center of Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. His research has focused on commercially exploited reef fish and their fisheries in the Gulf of California, as well as the management of marine protected areas in the region. He has coordinated major workshop regarding fisheries regulations in the Gulf of California, involving fishing communities from different parts of Mexico, the National Institute of Fisheries, State Governments, and the Mexican Environmental Agency. Octavio has photographed marine ecosystems in Mexican coastal waters since 1994. His photographs have been used to illustrate outreach publications about the conservation of marine habitats, marine reserve, and marine species of importance concerns. Currently (2014), he leads a research group composed of undergraduate and graduate students that investigates the importance of mangroves for the regional fisheries. He also is part of a regional project that deals with the conservation of marine top predators and spawning aggregations. Additionally, he leads a program that creates photo identification of large marine predators inside Mexican Marine Protected Areas.