I have been a member of the Society for Marine Mammalogy (SMM) since 2007, when I attended my first Biennial Conference in Cape Town, South Africa. After earning my MSc (2004) and PhD (2010) from Université de La Rochelle in France, I completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) in France and at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami—a city I have called home since 2012.
My research centers on the ecology, behavior, and conservation of marine mammals, though I have also studied sharks and sea turtles worldwide, particularly during my postdoctoral years. I am currently an Associate Professor of Biology at FIU, where I lead the Marine Mammal Ecology Laboratory. My work focuses on the spatial and trophic ecology of marine mammals, their ecological roles and importance within marine ecosystems, and the impacts of human activities on their populations.
Although I have been part of the Society for nearly two decades, my deeper involvement began when I co-chaired the 22nd Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, held in Palm Beach, Florida, in August 2022. Following that experience, I joined the SMM Board, serving as Secretary (2023–2024) and later as President-Elect (2024–2025).
As President, my goal is to increase the Society’s global impact and broaden our membership by fostering greater inclusivity. I am committed to raising our visibility so that we can more effectively fulfill our mission: advancing marine mammal science worldwide and strengthening its role in education and conservation management. Marine mammals and our marine mammal science community need our efforts now more than ever.
Aloha and Happy New Year SMM Members- The delay of the conference means we are overdue for an update to our members. We would like to kick off the new year with an inter-conference meeting to give an update on our budget, explain some changes to our governing documents that will be on the March […]
Aloha, Dr. Paul Nachtigall will be stepping down after five years of guiding the SMM Ethics Committee. His legacy of commitment to the SMM is worth mentioning again. He presented his doctoral work at Ken Norris’ meeting in Santa Cruz in 1975, setting in motion his strong involvement at the founding meeting in San Francisco […]
Cetacean biologist heralded for over 30 years of research and conservation efforts. Every two years in the lead up to the Society for Marine Mammalogy conference, our Conservation Committee considers potential awardees for the Conservation Merit Prize. The Conservation Merit Prize is public recognition given to a person, team, or organization contributing toward solving a […]
Thank you to all who joined us for our first webinar on equity in internships, hosted by SMM and WDC. Special thanks to our panelists, who shared their perspectives as program leaders and former interns and to our audience for your excellent, thoughtful questions and participation. We look forward to hosting the next webinar in […]
Dear Members, This is your reminder to vote for SMM’s Honorary Member nominees by 2 September 2021. We are pleased to present two new nominees to become Honorary Members for you to vote on. An Honorary Member is a member recognized for distinguished service to the field of marine mammalogy, as recommended unanimously by the […]