He obtained the PhD title in Environmental Sciences: Marine Environment and Resources (XXXIII Cycle) at the University of Messina in 2011 (2011). The main research interests concern the ecology of meso/macroplankton in transitional and marine environments and the management of fixed observation sites (buoys and oceanographic beacons) aimed at the acquisition of chemical-physical parameters and the biological characterization of the communities. His main skills and competences concern the knowledge of zooplankton sampling and analysis techniques, the use and development of measuring and sampling instruments of both the physical and biological component. He has participated in numerous oceanographic campaigns in the Mediterranean Sea and in long-term monitoring and research programs in marine and transitional environments. He is the author/co-author of over 20 publications in peer-reviewed journals and numerous technical reports. He is currently involved in the implementation of the oceanographic observatory on the Svalbard Islands.