Research Topics:

Ocean conservation, fisheries management, ecosystem-based approaches, marine protected areas (MPAs), endangered fishes, sharks, sturgeon

My work focuses on ocean conservation science, with emphasis on marine protected areas (MPAs), fish conservation and fisheries sustainability, ecosystem-based fishery management and endangered fishes. My contributions to advancing ocean conservation range from basic science innovations to achieving domestic and international policy change.

Marine Protected Areas have been a focal area of my work for more than two decades.  In Belize, I developed and oversaw a research program to evaluate the effectiveness of Glover’s Reef Marine Reserve.  That research demonstrated that reef shark abundance remained stable within the reserve for more than a decade, whereas shark populations outside the reserve declined dramatically. Prior to this study there was widespread skepticism about whether marine protected areas could benefit shark species.  From 2014 through 2020 I served as scientific lead of the 10×20 initiative, a coalition of UN Member states that built political capital, helped secure funding and provided guidance for the establishment of marine protected areas around the world. The 10×20 initiative held a major conference in Rome in 2016 that produced a Scientists Consensus Statement on MPAs, and a Call to Action that was jointly agreed by MPA experts and diplomats. Since the year 2000 the amount of ocean covered by MPAs increased more than ten-fold, with a large share of that increase occurring during the 10×20 campaign. 

In 2019 I co-authored a global study that identified gaps in protection for high priority ocean areas.  In 2021 a major study of China’s MPAs assessed the extent, type and representativeness of marine protected areas in different regions of the country. Later in 2021 I co-authored the MPA Guide, which emphasizes the importance of implemented and highly or fully protected MPAs to achieve effective ocean conservation and introduces a framework for determining stage of establishment and level of protection. A comprehensive analysis of U.S. MPAs published in 2022 was the first to employ the MPA Guide.

In addition to place-based MPA research, I am working on frameworks for effective MPAs including enabling conditions such as finance mechanisms sufficient to sustain MPAs, and effective and cost-effective management, enforcement and compliance methodologies.

Ecosystem-based fishery management is a holistic approach that emphasizes the integrity of marine ecosystems and the interconnectedness of species and habitats.  I spearheaded the first scientific consensus on ecosystem-based fishery management, which was published in the journal  Science in 2004 .  To further understanding and practical implementation of ecosystem-based fishery management, I have explored the role that forage fish play in marine ecosystems, and the consequences of fishing these critically important species.  In part, to achieve these broader goals, I chaired the  Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force, an international team of 13 preeminent scientists whose mission was to develop consensus recommendations for forage fish management that recognized the critical role these species play in marine ecosystems.  The task force conducted the most comprehensive global analysis of forage fish management to date, and successfully achieved its charge, releasing its report in April 2012.  In less than a year’s time, the report,  “Little Fish, Big Impact: Managing a Crucial Link in Ocean Food Webs,” began influencing policy decisions, both nationally and internationally, about forage fish management, including California’s ecosystem-based forage fishery policy adopted in November 2012.

I also focus research efforts on vulnerable and ecologically important marine animals, particularly sharks and sturgeons. Shark populations have declined dramatically due to destructive commercial fishing practices fueled largely by demand for shark fins.  A paper I co-authored,  “Global estimates of shark catches using trade records from commercial markets”  Ecology Letters, 2006 , estimated that between 26 and 73 million sharks are killed globally each year.  These widely cited statistics have served to energize and propel the shark conservation movement.  In 2008, the first book to focus on pelagic sharks and their plight,  Sharks of the Open Ocean , which I co-edited, was published.  This comprehensive compendium of the biology, conservation, and management of pelagic sharks and their unprecedented levels of exploitation furthered awareness of the threatened status of these sharks worldwide.  I have helped pioneer sophisticated DNA-based forensics techniques and monitoring systems that enable shark species to be identified from a small piece of tissue, usually from a fin.  Enforcement agents are now using these tools to detect and prosecute illegal sales of shark fins.

On a policy level, my work has contributed to better conservation of sharks, including passage of the U.S. Shark Finning Prohibition Act, finning bans implemented by several individual states, and regulation of the international trade in great white sharks under the Convention on International trade in Endangered Species.

Another extensively exploited fish on which I focus research efforts is the sturgeon. Most species of sturgeon in the United States and overseas are threatened with extinction due to relentless pursuit of their eggs, which are prized for caviar. Contributing scientific information on the status of these fish and associated trends has catalyzed conservation action.  Research results of studies I have conducted have informed policy decisions such as the listings of both the Atlantic and beluga sturgeon under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and a U.S. ban on the sale of beluga caviar.

I founded and co-direct the  Shinnecock Bay Restoration Program (ShiRP).  ShiRP was developed in response to deteriorating environmental conditions in Shinnecock Bay, Long Island, caused primarily by overfishing and pollution. An important goal of the project is to improve the ecological integrity of the bay by restoring shellfish and seagrass beds, which will result in improved water quality, increased abundance of fish, shellfish and other wildlife, as well as a healthier environment.  Following a decade of restoration work focused on building no-take hard clam sanctuaries and oyster reefs we have established the success of the program at eliminating harmful algal blooms and rebuilding shellfish populations. We also documented a 16-fold increase in hard clam landings in areas open to fishing - a “spillover effect” emanating from the hard clam sanctuaries.  Our restoration work is informed by complementary scientific studies, and outreach and partnerships are key elements of the restoration plan.

In 2022, Shinnecock Bay was recognized as a Global Hope Spot by Mission Blue – the first Hope Spot in New York. The Shinnecock Hope Spot was featured by NBC in its series Chasing Our Climate

I have led several major oceanic field expeditions and served on many high-level scientific panels, including President Clinton’s Panel on Ocean Exploration, the Task Force on Environmental Sustainability commissioned by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and several committees of the National Academy of Sciences. Currently I serve on the Ecological Society of America’s rapid response team, the Seafood Watch Technical Advisory Committee, and as a Director of Fishwise.

For more information about my research and the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science, please visit:  http://www.oceanconservationscience.org/.

Awards (recent selected)

Hugo and Anita Freudenthal Research Award. New York State Marine Education Association. 2024
Hope Spot Champion – Shinnecock Bay – Mission Blue
Elected Fellow, The Explorers Club , 2020
Oscar E. Sette Award – Outstanding Marine Fishery Biologist, American Fisheries Society, 2016
Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2015, for “distinguished contributions to the fields of fisheries and conservation science, particularly for development and application of quantitative methods to sustainably manage overexploited marine fishes”.
Ocean Hero, Origins Magazine, April 2015.
Award for Excellence in Public Outreach, American Fisheries Society, 2014
Elected Fellow, American Institute of Research Biologists (AIFRB), 2014
Food Visionary (2012) Selected by Whole Living Magazine (a Martha Stewart publication) in November 2012 as one of the visionaries who is changing the way we eat.