team

Principal Investigator, Senior Research Scientist

Trained primarily as an animal behaviorist, Colleen has spent the past 25+ years conducting research in marine mammal cognition, bioacoustics, and behavioral ecology. She heads the Cognition and Sensory Systems Laboratory at UCSC’s Long Marine Laboratory where resident seals, sea lions, and sea otters are trained for participation in cooperative research. Colleen holds a B.Sc. in Biology, a M.Sc. in Marine Science, and a Ph.D. in Ocean Sciences. As PI, Colleen is responsible for all research, personnel, animal care, funding, and administrative activities in the program. She mentors graduate and undergraduate students conducting research in the areas of animal learning, sensory biology, and physiology. She oversees animal research programs at Long Marine Laboratory and at the Alaska SeaLife Center, and participates in the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees at both sites. Colleen worked closely with the project’s founder, Dr. Ronald Schusterman, before taking over leadership of the project. She strives to sustain the positive, cooperative, and team-based program that has generated so much good science and fostered so many wonderful scientists over the years.

Project Scientist, Acoustics team leader

Jillian received her bachelor’s degree in Biology and Natural Resources from Cornell University in 2009, and her doctorate in Ocean Sciences from the University of California Santa Cruz in 2016. Prior to joining the Pinniped Lab back in 2010, Jillian studied fisheries biology at NOAA’s J.J. Howard Lab, dolphin behavioral ecology with the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, and baleen whale acoustics at NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Jillian is primarily interested in understanding how marine mammals perceive their environment and how this influences their behavioral ecology. Her research in the lab focuses on the bioacoustics of pinniped species and she is leading ongoing audiometric research with bearded and monk seals. Jillian contributes to a range of other psychoacoustic, bioacoustic, and behavioral research projects, and serves as Assistant Director of the research program.

Research Associate, Field program leader

Since first joining the lab in 2007, Caroline has spent the past decade exploring sound production and reception in seals. She completed her PhD in 2018 at UCSC in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department where she studied the communication system of northern elephant seals and decoded the specialized acoustic signals males produce during male-male combat during the breeding season. Caroline manages our long-term field study of northern elephant seals, which she continues to lead each winter breeding season, and leads field projects concerning animal behavior and communication. Within the lab, she enriches ongoing research projects by training resident animals for various research projects, mentoring students, and bringing her skills and energy to research collaborations. In addition to her work with our program, Caroline is a founding member of the California Ocean Alliance and a staff scientist at SEA, Inc.

Graduate Student Researcher, Department of Ocean Sciences

Brandi joined the lab in 2014 as an undergraduate volunteer, and in 2018, she started her graduate degree with the program studying the auditory capabilities of the endangered Hawaiian monk seal. During her time at the lab, Brandi has participated in various physiology and sensory biology studies of seals, sea lions, and sea otters. She has gained expertise in psychoacoustic methods and supports all of our behavioral and bioacoustics research projects. Brandi is a skilled trainer with a background in veterinary science, and helps to manage the daily care of our animals. She provides support and leadership to the overall program, manages our daily research schedule, and ensures we achieve all of our research goals.

Animal and Research Technician, PHOCAS team leader

Maddie first joined the pinniped lab as an intern following completion of her bachelor’s degree in zoology and animal behavior at the University of New Hampshire. She then became a graduate student in the lab, working in partnership with our Arctic seals. Maddie received her M.S. in Ocean Sciences in 2023, and still supports the PHOCAS project in California and Alaska through data collection, data management, animal care activities, and occasional dance routines. Trained to conduct research at both facilities, Maddie serves as the bridge between our teams at Long Marine Laboratory and the Alaska SeaLife Center.

Laboratory Technician, Acoustic Research Technician

Noah graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2022 with a BS in Marine Biology after joining our team in November of 2021. Noah comes to us from the US Navy Marine Mammal Program in San Diego, where he contributed to various bioacoustic projects involving bottlenose dolphins. These research interests carried over to our program and grew into a focused role supporting our psychoacoustic projects and operational team. Noah is treasured for his handwriting and construction skills, among other super powers. He works most closely with his training partner, California sea lion Ronan.

Laboratory and Animal Technician, Research Team Leader

Griffen joined the lab in 2021 a few months before graduating from UCSC with a BS in both Environmental Science and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology. He became a research assistant in 2021 and has been contributing to the PHOCAS project through his work on behavioral analysis. Griffen has become an experienced marine mammal trainer and works closely with all the animals and staff on our team. He is an expert at knot tying and inspirational sign offs.

Laboratory Technician

Nolan joined our team in May of 2022 and has since become a reliable team member who is always happy to help and put the needs of others first. Nolan graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a BS in Biology and has a strong interest in animal husbandry and veterinary medicine. During his time at the Pinniped lab, he has assisted with data collection and analysis for multiple aspects of the PHOCAS project. Most recently, Nolan has been enjoying training with his partner, Noatak the Bearded Seal. Outside of the lab, Nolan enjoys reading spooky murder mysteries next to a campfire while sipping on chamomile tea.

Laboratory Technician

Alexandra joined our team in June 2022. Since then, she graduated from the University of California Santa Cruz with a BS in Marine Biology. In her time at the Pinniped Lab she has found her passion in physiology and animal husbandry. She assists with the PHOCAS project by helping collect and analyze data. Recently, she has enjoyed working with and learning from her training partner, Ronan the California sea lion.

Laboratory Technician

Seri is a marine biology major at UCSC. She joined the lab in October 2022 as a second year undergrad, and became a lab technician in August 2022. Throughout her time at the lab, she has become very interested in psychoacoustics research and its conservation applications. On a daily basis, she assists with the acoustics program, participates in photogrammetry, and enjoys every moment spent with the animals.

Laboratory Technician

Sofia is a Biology major at UC Santa Cruz. She joined the Pinniped Lab in October 2022 and has since found her interests in marine mammal research. Sofia enjoys learning from both the PHOCAS and bioacoustics programs, while assisting with data collection and haul-out behavior analysis. Time spent with the pinnipeds has been a highlight of Sofia’s undergraduate experience.

Laboratory Technician

Natalie joined the Pinniped lab in March 2023 at the end of her second year at UCSC. As a Psychology major, she was initially most interested in the lab’s cognitive research, but has come to love all things animal husbandry. Natalie assists with record keeping and data consolidation in addition to helping analyze PHOCAS research via photogrammetry. Her favorite activity at the lab is making snowballs for Ronan the sea lion!

Laboratory Technician

Originally from Boulder, Colorado, Natalie is a Marine Biology major at UCSC who joined the Pinniped Lab team in May of 2023. Natalie has a passion for both bioacoustics and animal husbandry. She loves to be involved in daily research and data collection for the physiology and acoustics experiments, and treasures every minute spent with the lab’s wonderful marine mammals.

Brandon completed his PhD at the lab and studied communication, hearing, and the effects of noise on seals and sea lions under the guidance of Dr. Ron Schusterman. Brandon then went on to direct the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Ocean Acoustics Program. Since returning to Santa Cruz in 2009, Brandon has been centrally involved in supporting the lab in exploring the audiometry of pinnipeds, and has worked to develop systematic noise exposure criteria for marine mammals. Brandon currently serves as the President and Senior Scientist of SEA, inc. 

We work with Dr. Peter Cook from New College of Florida on various cognitive studies, including those related to the neurobiological bases of behavior. Learn more about Peter’s lab here!

Isabelle is a Research Scientist at the Université Paris Sud in France. She specializes in pinniped communication, and has worked all over the world exploring specializing in mother and pup recognition in seals and sea lions. She has been an integral member of our field research team since 2009, and has helped us to decode the communication strategies used during male male contests and female and pup interactions during the breeding season. 

Dr. Mathevon is an internationally recognized expert in comparative communication, whose own research focuses on a wide range of species including crocodiles, bonobos, and humans. Serving as the director of the CNPS-ENES laboratory in Saint Etienne, France, Nicolas has been a core member of the field research team since 2009, and has helped the lab to uncover the function of the sounds produced by northern elephant seals. 

We collaborate with Dr. Jeppe Have Rasmussen, a Research Fellow at the University of Copenhagen, who has expertise in the development of deep learning-based detectors used in combination with passive acoustic monitoring. Jeppe generously shares his time, knowledge, and love of science with all of us. We are currently working together to apply AI techniques in our bioacoustics research with the endangered Hawaiian monk seal.

We collaborate with the Alaska SeaLife Center. See their website here!

Sonny originally joined our program in September 2009 and progressed through the program to become spirit guide to most of the staff and students. She has served nearly every role within our team and is currently our archivist, taking care of long-term records, samples, and information. With many years of experience in our team, The Marine Mammal Center, and Monterey Bay Aquarium, Sonny is an animal husbandry specialist with expertise in animal transports and restraint. There is nothing that Sonny can’t do.