Brownell, R. L. Jr.

Biographical History

Robert L. Brownell, Jr. is a Senior Scientist for International Protected Resources with NOAA Fisheries at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in Pacific Grove, California, USA. Brownell received his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo in 1975. Brownell has conducted research on the biology and conservation of whales, dolphins and porpoises throughout the world with major studies in Mexico, South America, Japan, and Russia. Since 1995, he has led the U.S. side of the joint Russian-American research on the Western Gray Whale off Sakhalin Island. He has published close to 200 scientific papers, book chapters, and management documents on various aspects of whale, dolphin, and porpoise biology, conservation, and management. Brownell has been a member of the U. S. delegation to the International Whaling Commission since 1975 and served as Vice-Chair and Chair of the IWC Scientific Committee from 1985 to 1991. Brownell also served as President of the largest international society for marine mammals, The Society for Marine Mammalogy, from 1987 to 1989. He served as the Chief of Marine Mammal Research for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from the late 1970s to 1991. Between 1991 and 1993, he was the Science Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Oceans at the U.S. Department of State. In 1993, Brownell became the Director of the Marine Mammal Division at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA Fisheries in La Jolla, California, and then took up his present position two years ago. He has also been a member of the various marine mammal specialist groups under the IUCN (The World Conservation Union) for about 25 years and has served three terms as a Scientific Advisor to the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission.

Related entities

• United States. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: He is a Senior Scientist for International Protected Resources with NOAA Fisheries at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in Pacific Grove, California.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service : He served as the Chief of Marine Mammal Research for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from the late 1970s to 1991.

Topic

Marine mammalogists

Form/Genre

Personal name

Occupation

Marine mammalogists