Frecia Pinguil
Laboratory Assistant
Frecia Pinguil started as a volunteer with FCD in 2022 helping with bird nest monitoring and searches for natural enemies of Philornis downsi on mainland Ecuador. She also participated as an assistant in the biological control lab run by ESPOL-CDF-University of Minnesota. In 2022, she graduated from the University of Guayaquil as a biologist.
Since then, she has been working as a laboratory assistant in the biological control lab where she is responsible for rearing parasitoid wasps and evaluating their host range to determine if they are specialists of Philornis downsi. Frecia also continues to help monitor nests during the bird breeding season.
Frecia's programs
Land
Control of the avian vampire flyIn a race against time, our scientists are working hard to find ways to control the avian vampire fly (Philornis downsi), an invasive parasitic fly that is affecting the survival of the unique small landbirds of the Galapagos Islands, including the iconic Darwin’s finches.