Nataliya Budaeva
Associate Professor
Department of Natural History
University Museum of Bergen, Norway
The focus of my research is evolution and systematics of Eunicida, the marine bristle worms bearing complex jaws in the ventral muscular pharynx. I mostly work on the family Onuphidae, a group of tube-dwelling eunicidan polychaetes with very rich external morphology. Onuphidae can be very abundant in the intertidal zone and are often used as fish bait or even farmed for fish food. They are also one of the most diverse polychaete families in the deep sea with many species remained undescribed. In my research, I try to understand the evolution of the deep-sea lineages of onuphid bristle worms, their genetic and morphological diversity and distribution in the ocean. For that I utilize methods of morphological studies (light and scanning electron microscopy, dissections, staining) as well as DNA sequencing and methods of phylogenetic analysis.
Nothria otsuchiensis (NSW, Australia)