oceanography, extreme events, sea surface temperature
5
Scopus Publications
24
Scholar Citations
3
Scholar h-index
1
Scholar i10-index
Scopus Publications
Penguins at the freshwater–marine boundary: Overlooked ecological linkages and climate-change risks Raven Quilestino-Olario Avian Research, 2026 Penguins are usually framed as marine predators, yet freshwater can strongly alter the environments in which they forage, breed and survive. This narrative mini review synthesises evidence for how river outflows, glacial meltwater, snowmelt and rainfall shape penguin ecology across estuarine, fjord, colony and climatic settings. In southern Australia, river plumes reorganise penguin foraging habitat, and prolonged drought linked to reduced coastal freshwater delivery has coincided with major demographic decline. In Antarctic and subantarctic fjords, glacial meltwater can enhance stratification, alter prey depth and influence penguin foraging conditions, but its effects are not uniformly beneficial because increased turbidity, contaminant transport and physical disturbance may also degrade habitat. At breeding colonies, snow can provide a local freshwater source that helps reduce osmoregulatory costs, whereas excessive meltwater and rainfall can flood nests, collapse burrows, chill chicks and reduce breeding success. Physiological and isotopic evidence further suggests that freshwater influences penguins not only through habitat and reproduction, but also through hydration, salt balance and longer-term environmental archives. Across systems, freshwater acts both as a resource and a hazard, and its effects depend on timing, magnitude and local context. This freshwater-centred perspective highlights penguins as indicators of linked land–sea and ice–sea change, clarifies key thresholds and uncertainties, and points to more targeted priorities for future interdisciplinary research.
Characteristics of Marine Heatwaves in the Philippines Brisneve Edullantes, Brenna Mei M. Concolis, Raven Quilestino-Olario, Dale Patrick D. Atup, Aiza Cortes, Aletta T. Yñiguez Regional Studies in Marine Science, 2023
Co-occurrence of a marine heatwave and a reported tomato jellyfish (Crambione mastigophora Maas, 1903) bloom in March 2020 at El Nido, Palawan, Philippines Raven Quilestino-Olario, Brenna Mei M. Concolis, Dale Patrick D. Atup, Aiza Cortes, Aletta T. Yñiguez, Brisneve Edullantes Plankton and Benthos Research, 2023 Globally, observations on marine species during marine heatwaves (MHWs) help outline the scope of the MHW’s possible biological effects. In line with this effort, this paper presents a 2020 MHW that coincided with a reported ‘tomato jellyfish’ (Crambione mastigophora Maas, 1903) bloom on 23 March 2020 in the Corong-Corong Bay of Palawan, Philippines. Detecting a moderate MHW from 21 March to 04 April 2020, the analysis of sea surface temperatures revealed that most areas surrounding the bloom site attained their peak positive anomalies on the same day as the reported bloom. Certain physical mechanisms present in the first quarter of 2020 may have played a role in the occurrence of both events: the presence of cyclonic eddies and parallel monsoonal winds alongshore can induce upwelling which promotes biological productivity in surface waters, while the observed weakening of winds have been associated with anomalous warming of the sea surface. Further studies are still highly recommended to determine the exact causes of the jellyfish bloom and what conditions make it more likely to happen during MHWs. However, if the C. mastigophora is hypothetically able to continually bloom amidst warming temperatures, the increasing trend of MHW frequency and intensity in the West Philippine Sea (where the reported bloom site is situated) may consequently yield more future co-occurrences. This paper aims to hopefully contribute to the existing knowledge of possible biological impacts associated with extreme marine events, especially in the Philippine context where both jellyfish blooms and MHWs are understudied.
Marine Heatwaves and their Impacts: Research Perspectives in the Philippines Philippine Journal of Science, 2022
RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Penguins at the freshwater–marine boundary: Overlooked ecological linkages and climate-change risks R Quilestino-Olario Avian Research, 100386 , 2026 2026
Iceberg B09B grounding: a plausible trigger for more persistent marine cold-spells off Commonwealth Bay, East Antarctica R Quilestino-Olario, S Berg, M Melles, B Wagner EGUsphere 2026, 1-24 , 2026 2026
From fossils to conservation: an overview of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic penguins R Quilestino-Olario Polarforschung 94, 17-41 , 2026 2026 Citations: 1
Marine cold-spells in the Philippines (1982–2021): a systematic characterization of metrics, trends, and asymmetries with marine heatwaves R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, BMM Concolis, HO Arceo, A Cortes, ... 2025
Climate Assessment Report D5.1 v1.1 C Atkinson, N Rayner, J Kennedy, T Sikorski, G Bonino, ... https://climate.esa.int/media/documents/SST_CCI_D5.1_CAR_v1.1-signed.pdf , 2023 2023
Characteristics of marine heatwaves in the Philippines B Edullantes, BMM Concolis, R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, A Cortes, ... Regional Studies in Marine Science 62, 102934 , 2023 2023 Citations: 11
Co-occurrence of a marine heatwave and a reported tomato jellyfish (Crambione mastigophora Maas, 1903) bloom in March 2020 at El Nido, Palawan, Philippines R Quilestino-Olario, BMM Concolis, DPD Atup, A Cortes, AT Yñiguez, ... Plankton and Benthos Research 18 (2), 93-105 , 2023 2023 Citations: 5
Marine Heatwaves and their Impacts: Research Perspectives in the Philippines. B Edullantes, BMM Concolis, R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, A Cortes, ... Philippine Journal of Science 151 (5) , 2022 2022 Citations: 7
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Characteristics of marine heatwaves in the Philippines B Edullantes, BMM Concolis, R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, A Cortes, ... Regional Studies in Marine Science 62, 102934 , 2023 2023 Citations: 11
Marine Heatwaves and their Impacts: Research Perspectives in the Philippines. B Edullantes, BMM Concolis, R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, A Cortes, ... Philippine Journal of Science 151 (5) , 2022 2022 Citations: 7
Co-occurrence of a marine heatwave and a reported tomato jellyfish (Crambione mastigophora Maas, 1903) bloom in March 2020 at El Nido, Palawan, Philippines R Quilestino-Olario, BMM Concolis, DPD Atup, A Cortes, AT Yñiguez, ... Plankton and Benthos Research 18 (2), 93-105 , 2023 2023 Citations: 5
From fossils to conservation: an overview of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic penguins R Quilestino-Olario Polarforschung 94, 17-41 , 2026 2026 Citations: 1
Penguins at the freshwater–marine boundary: Overlooked ecological linkages and climate-change risks R Quilestino-Olario Avian Research, 100386 , 2026 2026
Iceberg B09B grounding: a plausible trigger for more persistent marine cold-spells off Commonwealth Bay, East Antarctica R Quilestino-Olario, S Berg, M Melles, B Wagner EGUsphere 2026, 1-24 , 2026 2026
Marine cold-spells in the Philippines (1982–2021): a systematic characterization of metrics, trends, and asymmetries with marine heatwaves R Quilestino-Olario, DPD Atup, BMM Concolis, HO Arceo, A Cortes, ... 2025
Climate Assessment Report D5.1 v1.1 C Atkinson, N Rayner, J Kennedy, T Sikorski, G Bonino, ... https://climate.esa.int/media/documents/SST_CCI_D5.1_CAR_v1.1-signed.pdf , 2023 2023
