Mark Hixon

Helen Thompson Professor of Marine Conservation Biology, Department of Zoology

Oregon State University

Dr. Mark Hixon, Professor of Marine Biology at Oregon State University (OSU), is an expert on coastal marine fishes, which he has studied on the U.S. Pacific Coast, Hawai`i, French Polynesia, the Great Barrier Reef, the Bahamas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands for over 30 years. Dr. Hixon completed his Ph.D. at U.C. Santa Barbara, where he studied the ecology of kelp-forest fishes, and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Hawai`i, where he began his studies of the ecology of coral-reef fishes. At OSU since 1984, he has participated in long-term manned submersible studies of groundfish communities inhabiting rocky banks on the outer continental shelf of Oregon. His research has clarified mechanisms that naturally regulate populations and sustain biodiversity of marine fishes. A National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, Fulbright Senior Scholar, and Aldo Leopold Leadership Program Fellow, Dr. Hixon serves on the editorial boards of three scientific journals: Coral Reefs, Ecology, and Ecological Monographs. He is also a scientific advisor to a variety of marine conservation groups, including the Pacific Marine Conservation Council, the Communication Partnership for Science and the Sea, and the Bahamas National Trust. Dr. Hixon also serves on the National Science Foundation Geosciences Directorate Advisory Committee. He is an appointee of both the Clinton and Bush administrations to the national Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee, and has served as chair of the National MPA System Subcommittee.