About me

Hi,


I'm Guuske, a PhD candidate at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) in the UK. I am originally from the Netherlands, but I was born in Indonesia and then moved to Hong Kong when I was two. I spent 12 years living in Hong Kong before moving to the Netherlands for the first time. I lived there for four years and now I've been in Manchester for six.

My PhD research focuses on the conservation management of elasmobranch (sharks and rays) populations in the wild and in captivity. I will be using molecular techniques  (e.g. mitochondrial CO1 and microsatellites) to identify species sold in markets as well as genotype populations of sharks in the Pacific and Caribbean. My research will also look at pollutants in sharks as a health concern for shark populations as well as humans. Most of my research focuses on threatened shark species heavily targeted by fisheries. I will be reporting on these shark catches at local fisheries in Ecuador and Colombia (picture below is smooth hammerheads at an artisanal fishery in Ecuador). 

As you can tell from title, my life is devoted to sharks and their conservation. I have been very fortunate in the way that I spent most of my life living by the sea. I grew up wanting to understand more about the ocean and how we can protect it. I will find any excuse to be by the sea, even if that means wearing 10 layers on the cold windy beach back in the Netherlands (picture above).

I will be sharing my adventures with you, and there will be plenty of shark pictures!



Comments

  1. Dear Guuske,

    I am 1st year PhD student in the University of Salford doing genetic approach to reduce illegal trade of shark and ray in Indonesia (website). I found your interesting work and would like discuss more about it. May be you have a time and have a chat sometimes.

    Thank you for your attention.

    Best regards,


    ---
    PRASETYO, andhika prima

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Andhika,

      Thank you for getting in contact, and sorry I haven't replied sooner. I just got back from the field this weekend. What you're doing sounds amazing, I would love to hear more about it.

      If you want to chat, just shoot me an email: guuske.p.tiktak@stu.mmu.ac.uk

      Hope to speak to you soon.

      Best wishes,

      Guuske Tiktak

      Delete

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