Rate My Professor Liz Slooten

Elisabeth Slooten, commonly known as Liz Slooten, is an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Zoology within the Division of Sciences at the University of Otago. She earned a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science with first-class honours in Zoology from the University of Auckland, followed by a PhD in Zoology from the University of Canterbury in 1990. Her doctoral thesis focused on the population biology, social organization, and behaviour of Hector's dolphins. Slooten joined the University of Otago's Department of Zoology in 1990, rising to full Professor in 2015. Her career has centered on applied research in marine mammal conservation, collaborating closely with Steve Dawson on long-term field studies initiated in the 1980s.

Slooten's research interests encompass marine mammals, marine conservation, reproductive biology, population biology, population viability analysis, and risk assessment. She has directed multi-decade projects monitoring Hector's and Maui dolphins at Banks Peninsula since 1985, sperm whales at Kaikōura since 1990, and bottlenose dolphins in Fiordland. These efforts evaluate the impacts of gillnet and trawl fisheries, tourism, mining, and acoustic disturbance, while assessing marine protected area efficacy through individual-based models. Key publications include the highly cited 'The bottlenose dolphin community of Doubtful Sound features a large proportion of long-lasting associations: can geographic isolation explain this unique trait?' (Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 2003; 2916 citations), 'Bycatch in gillnet fisheries threatens critically endangered small cetaceans and other aquatic megafauna' (Endangered Species Research, 2019; 240 citations), and recent contributions such as 'Multi-event modeling of Hector's dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) fecundity using four decades of monitoring' (Conservation Science & Practice, 2026) and 'New insights into the population structure of Hector's dolphin revealed using environmental DNA' (Environmental DNA, 2024). Her work has directly informed New Zealand's first marine mammal sanctuary at Banks Peninsula and enhanced national dolphin protection policies. Slooten has supervised over 90 master's and PhD students, fostering a legacy in marine ecology. Among her honors are the Royal Society of New Zealand's Charles Fleming Award for Environmental Achievement—the only woman recipient—the 2016 New Zealand Marine Science Society's inaugural John Morton Medal (with Dawson), and the 2025 Blake Leader Awards' Earth Sciences New Zealand Pūtaiao/Science Award for environmental leadership.