I am a biologist, with a MSc degree in Marine Biology at Universidade Federal Fluminense
and concluded my PhD in Oceanography at Universidade Federal de Pernambuco in 2012.
Currently, I am conducting my postdoc research in Canada at Simon Fraser University, with
fellowship provided by CAPES Ciência sem Fronteiras. My project “Invasive lionfish
population growth trajectories and management strategies for the Southern Caribbean
Sea” encompass several aspects of the lionfish invasion throughout the Caribbean region
and Local management practices for the Caribbean coast of Panama. It is clear that lionfish
can no longer be eradicated from the region. Therefore, understanding patterns of invasion
and the dynamic of invasion success has become of foremost importance to mitigate the
impacts of lionfish on areas that have yet to be colonized, such as the coast of Brazil.

In addition, this project will also support the ongoing monitoring program that was initiated
three years ago on the occurrence and distribution of lionfish on reefs off Bocas del Toro
Archipelago by the NGO Tropical Conservation Consortium (tropicalcc.org), to which I am
also affiliated. The project will be the focus of a network of information and outreach efforts
with local stakeholders (e.g., fishers, restaurant, diving shops) on Isla Colón, Bocas del
Toro, Panama. I will search for additional regional partnerships (e.g., Centro Regional
Ramsar para la Capacitación e Investigación sobre Humedales para el Hemisferio
Occidental (CREHO); Autoridad de los recursos acuáticos de Panamá (ARAP)) to help
stakeholders sustain lionfish removals whenever possible. The intention here is that within
a short time frame removals will become more regular and self-sustained by locals, and my
results will inform the optimal frequency of removals.

Publications
2013
Monteiro-Neto C, Bertoncini AA, Chaves LCT, Noguchi R, Mendonça-Neto JP & Rangel CA.
2013. Checklist of marine fishes from coastal islands of Rio de Janeiro, with remarks on
marine conservation. Marine Biodiversity Records, 6: e139.

Chaves LCT, Pereira PHC & Feitosa JLL. 2013. Coral reef fish association with macroalgal
beds on a tropical reef system in Northeastern Brazil. Marine and Freshwater Research, 64
(12): 1101-1111.

2012
Chaves LCT, Ormond CGA, McGinty ES & Ferreira BP. 2012. Space partitioning among
damselfishes in the Caribbean coast of Panama: the role of habitat preferences.
Neotropical Ichthyology, 10: 633 – 642.

Pereira PHC, Feitosa JLL, Chaves LCT, Araújo ME. 2012. Reef fish foraging associations:
“Nuclear-follower” behavior or an ephemeral interaction? Proceedings of the 12th
International Coral Reef Symposium. Cairns, Australia.

Feitosa JLL, Chaves LCT, Pereira PHC, Moraes RLG & Ferreira BP. 2012. Behavioral and
ontogenetic color changes in a poorly known lutjanid. Marine Biology Research, 8: 906 –
911

Feitosa CV, Chaves LCT, Araújo ME & Ferreira BP. 2012. Recreational fish feeding inside
Brazilian MPAs: impacts on reef fish community structure. Journal of the Marine Biological
Association of the United Kingdom, 3: 1 – 9.

2010
Chaves LCT, Feitosa JLL & Pereira PHC. 2010. First record of predation on jellyfish by
butterflyfish on Brazilian rocky reefs. Marine Biodiversity Records, 3: e26.

Chaves LCT, Nunes JACC & Sampaio CLS. 2010. Shallow reef fish communities of South
Bahia coast, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Oceanography, 58: 33-46.

2009
Chaves LCT & Monteiro-Neto C. 2009. Comparative analysis of rocky reef fish community
structure in coastal islands of south-eastern Brazil. Journal of the Marine Biological
Association of the United Kingdom, 89: 609-619.

2008
Chaves LCT. 2008. Você já conhece o peixe-donzela? Decostop: 3

Mendonça-Neto J P, Ferreira CEL, Chaves LCT & Pereira RC. 2008. Influence of Palythoa
caribaeorum (Anthozoa, Cnidaria) zonation on site-attached reef fishes. Anais da Academia
Brasileira de Ciências, 80: 495-513.

2007
Nunes JACC, Chaves LCT, Maia-Nogueira R & Sampaio CLS. 2007. Association between
juvenile reef fish and the Caribbean reef squid Sepioteuthis sepioidea on north-eastern
Brazilian coastal reefs. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom,
87: 761-762, 2007.

Rangel CA, Chaves LCT & Monteiro-Neto C. 2007. Baseline assessment of the reef fish
assemblage from Cagarras Archipelago, Rio de Janeiro, Southeastern Brazil. Brazilian
Journal of Oceanography, 55: 7-17.

Capítulos de livro/Book chapters
Bertoncini A, Rangel CA, Chaves LCT, Mendonça-Neto JP & Monteiro-Neto C. 2013. Peixes
Recifais do Monumento Natural das Ilhas Cagarras In: História, Pesquisa e biodiversidade
do Monumento Natural das Ilhas Cagarras.1 ed.Rio de Janeiro : Museu Nacional,
48:106-137.

Marone E, Soares MLG, Crees J, Villaça RC, Zalmon IR, Chaves LCT, Rego PJAR. 2009.
Ecossistemas Marinhos In: Estratégias e ações para a conservação da biodiversidade no
Estado do Rio de Janeiro. 1 ed.Rio de Janeiro. Instituto Biomas: 235-245.

email: lchaves@sfu.ca; lchaves@tropicalcc.org; lctchaves@gmail.com | lattes curriculum