Verónica Sandoya, Ph.D.

I am an Ecuadorian biologist and Associate Professor at Yachay Tech University, where I combine research, teaching, and student mentorship. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, a Master’s degree in Botany from the University of Concepción (Chile), and a Ph.D. in Terrestrial Ecology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona (Spain). My research focuses on biodiversity patterns along elevational gradients across Ecuadorian ecosystems, including Andean páramos, montane forests, and the Amazon rainforest. I study the impacts of introduced species on native biodiversity, species distribution patterns, community dominance, and plant functional traits. My current research explores native and non-native plant species, plant–environment interactions, and the ecological relationships between plant communities and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi across tropical Andean ecosystems.

Research interests
Biodiversity and conservation, Plant ecology, Elevational gradients, Functional ecology, Native and non-native species, Plant–soil interactions, Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Community ecology, Tropical Andean ecosystems, Species distribution patterns.

Selected Publications

• Sandoya, V., Pauchard, A., & Cavieres, L. A. (2017). Natives and non‐natives plants show different responses to elevation and disturbance on the tropical high Andes of Ecuador. Ecology and evolution, 7(19), 7909-7919.
• Sandoya, V., Saura-Mas, S., Granzow-de la Cerda, I., Arellano, G., Macía, M. J., Tello, J. S., & Lloret, F. (2021). Contribution of species abundance and frequency to aboveground forest biomass along an Andean elevation gradient. Forest Ecology and Management, 479, 118549.
• Sandoya-Sánchez, V., Ascencio-Lino, T., Gudiño-Gomezjurado, M., & Perez-Cárdenas, M. (2025). Influence of elevation and soil conditions on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi colonization in the rhizosphere of Cedrela montana. Studies in Fungi, 10(1).
• Herrera, I., Vargas, A., Rizzo, K., Aguirre, Z., Dillon, I., Espinoza-Amén, B.,…Sandoya, V., … & López-Pujol, J. (2025). Compiling and analyzing the non-native flora of a megadiverse Neotropical country: a new catalogue for continental Ecuador. NeoBiota, 100, 155-189.
• Herrera, I., Vargas, A., Rizzo, K., Aguirre, Z., Dillon, I., Espinoza-Amén, B.,…Sandoya, V., … & López-Pujol, J. (2025). Compiling and analyzing the non-native flora of a megadiverse Neotropical country: a new catalogue for continental Ecuador. NeoBiota, 100, 155-189.

Research Projects

Patrones de composición y diversidad de la vegetación nativa y no nativa en gradientes de elevación.
Descubriendo la diversidad de hongos micorrízicos arbusculares autóctonos asociados a cacao (Theobroma cacao), cedro (Cedrela montana) y guayusa (Ilexguayusa): un primer paso hacia la obtención de biofertilizantes y el desarrollo sustentable de la agroforestería.
Bioprospección de microorganismos promotores del crecimiento vegetal en la Antártida.