Anastasija Zaiko

Anastasija Zaiko 

Marine Scientist

Role at Cawthron

Anastasija is a member of the Biosecurity Team in Cawthron’s Coastal and Freshwater Group. She has 10+ years’ research expertise and has been involved in a number of large-scale international research projects aimed at assessing the effects of human activities on aquatic ecosystems (freshwater, estuarine and marine), impacts of invasive species. At Cawthron, Anastasija has been participating in the development and validation of molecular tools for the routine environmental monitoring in aquatic ecosystems, ecological health indicators and a range of projects focusing on different biosecurity aspects.

Technical skills, experience and interests

  • marine ecology and biosecurity
  • ecology and impacts of invasive species
  • ecosystem functioning
  • environmental health assessment
  • environmental DNA barcoding and biomonitoring
  • high throughput sequencing
  • ecology of benthic communities
  • ballast water and shipping introduction pathways

Qualifications

  • PhD (Ecology and Environmental Sciences) Coastal Research and Planning Institute, Klaipeda University, Lithuania, 2009
  • MSc (Ecology and Environmental Sciences) Klaipeda University, 2003
  • BSc (Ecology and Environmental Sciences) Klaipeda University, 2001
Anastasija Zaiko