Melissa Soldevilla, Ph.D.

Melissa Soldevilla, Ph.D. is the Passive Acoustic Monitoring program lead for the Marine Mammal and Turtle Division at NOAA Fisheries' Southeast Fisheries Science Center located in Miami, Florida.

Melissa's current research applies passive acoustic monitoring methods to study marine mammals and their ocean environment for use in management, restoration, and conservation. This includes conducting surveys using hydrophone arrays towed behind research vessels and long-term moored acoustic recorders to understand marine mammal abundance, movement patterns, and habitat use, and the ocean soundscapes they inhabit. Melissa obtained her Bachelor's of Science degree in Marine Science and Biology from the University of Miami and received her Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego. She worked as a postdoctoral scientist at the Duke University Marine Lab prior to starting her work at Southeast Fisheries Science Center in 2011. Melissa was awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in 2019.

Melissa Soldevilla's ResearchGate Link to Publications