Dr. Jeffrey Drazen is an ecologist interested in studying the role of fishes in deep sea habitats and the structure and function of deep-sea food webs in general. He earned his PhD from Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 2000 working under Dr. Ken Smith on the feeding ecology of bathyal and abyssal fishes. After graduation he backpacked around the world with his wife for a year, hitting all the continents including Antarctica. Afterwards, he took a postdoctoral position at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute under Drs. Jim Barry and Bruce Robison working on a diversity of projects most involving the use of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). Jeff joined the Oceanography faculty at University of Hawaii, Manoa in 2004 where he continues to pursue many aspects of deep-sea fish ecology. Currently he is working on projects to evaluate the use of deep water marine protected areas as a management tool for fisheries in Hawaii, exploring the structure of deep water pelagic food webs using stable isotope techniques, evaluating abyssal fish and scavenger populations in areas that will be mined for metal resources, and of course working on the structure and function of trench communities. Jeff is currently the chair of the Biological Oceanography Division. He has published over 60 scientific articles and book chapters and he has been on 55 research cruises including trips with the Alvin and PISCES submarines and ROV work to the bottom of the world’s trenches (10,000m).
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