Alonso Aguirre
Vice President for Conservation Medicine, Wildlife Trust

Sea Turtles and Marine Mammals: Sentinels of Our Oceans' Health

Alonso Aguirre is Vice President for Conservation Medicine, and cofounder and executive committee member of the Consortium for Conservation Medicine at Wildlife Trust. He is Chairman of the World Association of Wildlife Veterinarians (WAWV). He serves as a clinical assistant professor at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, and is a research professor at Columbia University, where he teaches in the Center for Environmental Research and Conservation (CERC), under the Conservation Biology Certificate Program.

After obtaining his doctorate in veterinary medicine, Aguirre received an M.S. in Wildlife Biology and Epidemiology, and a PhD in Wildlife Biology and protected areas management from Colorado State University, where he later served as assistant professor. He holds a post-doctorate from Oregon State University and the National Park Service, and was a visiting professor at the Wildlife Department, Swedish Veterinary Institute, Uppsala, where he researched the epidemiology of roe deer and Arctic fox diseases.

Aguirre acted as Veterinary Medical Officer for NMFS Protected Species Investigations, heading a pioneering epidemiology program for Hawaiian monk seals and sea turtles; his research has been instrumental in revealing the impact of emerging diseases of marine wildlife populations.

Aguirre has served as advisor to numerous organizations, was technical advisor to governments of several countries in the Americas, Southeast Asia and Western Europe, and has briefed the Mexican and US Congress, administration and federal agency leaders. He authored Helminths of Wildlife: A Global Perspective, co-edited Conservation Medicine: Ecological Health in Practice, published more than 150 professional papers in peer-reviewed journals, and serves as co-editor of the new Springer journal EcoHealth.

Dr. Aguirre is a winner of the Harry Jalanka Memorial Medal from Finland, the most prestigious award in zoological and wildlife medicine, for his contributions to the field.

His work has been the focus of extensive media coverage including Bioscience, Conservation In Practice, Environmental Health Perspectives, the New York Times, Trends in Ecology and Evolution and other international magazines, TV and radio shows.

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