Dr. Alba Costa obtained her PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Exeter (UK), focusing on the effects of habitat restoration on plant–animal mutualistic and antagonistic interaction networks in Seychelles inselberg plant communities, in collaboration with the Seychelles Parks and Gardens Authority (SPGA). She also holds an MSc in Biology and Biodiversity Conservation from the University of Salamanca (Spain).

She has worked on conservation projects across tropical and temperate regions, conducting research with plants, terrestrial vertebrates (mainly birds, amphibians, and reptiles), and freshwater fish. Her primary expertise and research interests focus on understanding the effects of anthropogenic stressors on mutualistic (e.g., seed dispersal, pollination) and antagonistic (e.g., herbivory, predation) interactions at the community level.

Specifically, she studies how invasive species and global change affect species-interaction networks on islands, aiming to inform effective restoration of native biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. She is currently a postdoctoral researcher within the European Research Council (ERC) project IslandLife, investigating the complexity of ecological interactions across islands in five archipelagos, including Seychelles, and assessing their vulnerability to global change.