Mauricio de la Maza-Benignos (July 27, 1970 –) is a Mexican conservationist, naturalist and

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and d ...

. He is also a member of Mexico's National System of Researchers. In addition to his work in ichthyology, he is an

agronomist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...

and zootechnician, a jurist, an administrator, and an editor.

Education

He earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

at the

Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) ( en, Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education), also known as Tecnológico de Monterrey or just Tec, is a secular and Mixed-sex education, coeducational private ...

, a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accoun ...

The University of Lancaster , mottoeng = Truth lies open to all , established = , endowment = £13.9 million , budget = £317.9 million , type = Public , city = Bailrigg, City of Lancaster , country = England , coor = , campus = Bailrigg , faculty = ...

, a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

summa cum laude, at the Autonomous University of Nuevo León, and studied Law, under a merit scholarship at the TecMilenio University. In 1994 he obtained the “Best students of Mexico Award” by the “National Permanent Committee for the Best Students of Mexico”, and in 2014 he was awarded first place in the “Dr. José Álvarez Del Villar” prize for his doctoral thesis, by the Mexican Ichthyology Society. He developed his doctoral thesis under the direction of Professor and Ichthyologist Ma. de Lourdes Lozano-Vilano, with whom he continues to do research. He also collaborates with geneticist and ichthyologist Dr
Evan W. Carson
at UNM, mainly in the area of conservation genetics. In 2015 he was awarded the UANL Research Prize to the best scholar paper in the Natural Sciences during 2014. From 2006―2011, he served as Director for the

World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wor ...

(WWF), Chihuahuan Desert Program; and from 2011― as Conservation Science Director and

Chief Executive Officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...

for Mexican NGO,

Pronatura Noreste Pronatura Noreste is a Mexican nongovernmental, nonprofit organization recognized by the National Council of Science and Technology as a scientific and educational organization. Pronatura Noreste is one of six regional offices of the Pronatura M� ...

Taxonomic contributions

His taxonomic contributions include categorizing and naming

cichlids Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted th ...

and

pupfish Pupfish are a group of small killifish belonging to ten genera of the family Cyprinodontidae of ray-finned fish. Pupfish are especially noted for being found in extreme and isolated situations. They are primarily found in North America, South Am ...

, revising cichlid genera ''

Herichthys ''Herichthys'' is a small genus of cichlid fishes. Most are Endemism, endemic to Mexico, but ''Texas cichlid, H. cyanoguttatus'' is also found in southern Texas (United States), and has been Introduced species, introduced to central Texas and Flo ...

'' and establishing ''Nosferatu''. He also co-authored with renowned gastropod expert
Dr. Robert Hershler
Research Zoologist and Curator of Mollusca at the Smithsonian, and his team, on cochliopid snails from thermal springs in northern Mexico. His work includes: * De La Maza-Benignos, M. & Lozano-Vilano, M.d.L. 2013. Description of three new species of the genus ''Herichthys'' (Perciformes: Cichlidae) from eastern Mexico, with redescription of ''H. labridens'', ''H. steindachneri'', and ''H. pantostictus''. Zootaxa, 3734 (2): 101–129. * De la Maza-Benignos. M., C.P. Ornelas-García, Ma. de L. Lozano-Vilano, M.E. García Ramírez, and I. Doadrio, 2014. Phylogeographic analysis of genus ''Herichthys'' (Perciformes: Cichlidae), with descriptions of ''Nosferatu'' new genus and ''H. tepehua'' n. sp. 2014. hydrobiologia. * De la Maza-Benignos, M. and L. Vela-Valladares. 2009. " ''Cyprinodon julimes'' sp. nov". In:
Los Peces del Río Conchos
(editor: De la Maza-Benignos, M.). Alianza WWF - FGRA y Gobierno del Estado de Chihuahua. * Hershler, R., J. J. Landye, L. Hsiu-Ping, M. De la Maza–Benignos, P. Ornelas & E.W. Carson. 2014. New species and records of Chihuahuan Desert springsnails, with a new combination for ''Tryonia brunei''. ''Western North American Naturalist'' 74(1): 47–65.

Conservation work

From 2006-2011, De la Maza-Benignos led the design and directed the implementation of th
WWF-Rio Conchos and Rio Grande Project
which involved working with the governments of the US and Mexico, local NGOs and communities along the Rio Conchos, one of the primary tributaries of the Rio Grande/

Río Bravo The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

. The project focused on aspects of ecosystem, source water protection, and restoration, efficient water use, engaging in participatory platforms, improved water governance and policy development, public awareness and education. It provided training in the implementation of environmental flows, soil and water conservation techniques, biodiversity conservation, development of community action plans, and distribution of educational materials comprising basic social, economic and environmental information. Work centered on building capacity for freshwater and wildlife management, including large mammals and conserving the native Aparique trout and the Julimes pupfish, as part of the WWF-TCCC global partnership.

Legal and policy work

Dr. De la Maza led the efforts that brought about, in 2014, the first concession of surface waters for “environmental use” in Mexico, within Cuatrociénegas' Area for Protection of Flora and Fauna, established by the National Commission for Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) in the state of Coahuila. "By this act, Mexico´s National Water Commission (CONAGUA) established the necessary legal mechanisms to ensure the security and legal certainty of water resources needed to protect priority ecosystems, thereby supporting the healthy environment to which every person in Mexico is entitled for his/her development and well-being under article 4 of the Mexican Constitution, while also promoting sustainable development of water resources.”Fuentes, V. 2014. Da Conagua concesión para uso ambiental. Reforma. http://www.reforma.com/aplicacioneslibre/preacceso/articulo/default.aspx?id=310688&urlredirect=http://www.reforma.com/aplicaciones/articulo/default.aspx?id=310688

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maza-Benignos, Mauricio de la 1970 births Living people Ichthyologists Conservation biologists Mexican conservationists Mexican ecologists Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education alumni