About me

Hola! My name is Ana Cecilia Rivera-Burgos. I am a Zoology Master’s Student and Graduate Research Assistant, working under the supervision of Dr. Jaime A. Collazo at the Department of Applied Ecology at North Carolina State University and the NC Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.

I was born and raised in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, where I grew up on the beach until I was 12 years old. It was then that my father decided to buy my great-grandparent's coffee farm in Las Marías. Coming from a family of male farmers, I decided to enroll in Animal Science and become the first female farmer of the family! In 2015 I graduated and received my B.S. in Animal Science from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez.

I have always been passionate towards animals, so much so, that my mother has told me that my first word was "gato" (cat). As I grew older, my love for nature also grew. Throughout my life, I have shared my home with dogs, cats, goats and many other farm animals. Due to this, I started volunteering with the US Fish and Wildlife Service  at an early age. During my time volunteering I did everything from restoration projects, to managing endangered plants in their shade-house. To complete my last internship with them, I traveled to their Southeast (Region 4) Regional Offices located in Atlanta, Georgia. It was there that I learned of the available opportunities for graduate studies at NC State. After graduating from the University of Puerto Rico, I decided to jump the creek to North Carolina, to pursue my dreams of working with wildlife.

My study focuses on the occupancy, abundance, distribution, and reproduction of three species of coquí, the Puerto Rican frog. My goal is to contribute in the development of possible management and conservation practices that will be implemented to help these frogs in the face of climate change.