Fernando Simal
Born in Spain and living in the Caribbean region since late childhood, Fernando holds a BSc in Biology from the University of Lousiana at Monroe, U.S., and a MSc in Nature Conservation and Management from the Universidad de Cádiz, Spain. After 10 years working on Bonaire as manager of the Washington-Slagbaai National Park including 2 years as Interim Manager of the Bonaire National Marine Park, he created the Natural and Historic Resources Unit of STINAPA Bonaire, which he managed during 4 years. During this time Fernando engaged in scientific research and monitoring that include different habitats and populations of birds, bats, flora, invasive species, coral reefs, marine mammals and more.
Fernando established the PPRABC (Bat Conservation Program for the ABC Islands) and acted as General Coordinator of this group for 3 years, successfully leading projects in scientific research, education and conservation. Additionally he is a board member of Birds Caribbean, the Society for Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds, the largest bird conservation organization in the region. Totally in love with the nature of the Islands above and below sea level, Fernando is happy to go as many extra miles as needed for the conservation of these ecological treasures and strongly believes that a truly regional approach is the only way to achieve significant goals in nature conservation of this biodiversity hot spot known as the Caribbean region.
Join Fernando this October 2017 to discuss the importance of our dry forests of Saba. During the day, Fernando will lead a hike through the dry forests and collect data on vegetation diversity and cover. Did you know Saba has 7 different vegetation zones? Join us to learn more! As part of the Saba After Dark program, Fernando will be setting up mist nets to observe the anatomy of bats and how they help propagate cacti populations in Saba’s dry forest.
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We will be updating our calendar with activity dates and times as we continue to coordinate our event. Stay tuned!
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