Rochelle Constantine

Doctoral advisorScott Baker, Dianne Brunton, Nick Gales, Bernd WürsigAcademic workInstitutionsUniversity of Auckland

Rochelle Lee Constantine ONZM is a New Zealand marine biologist, and is a full professor at the University of Auckland. Constantine specialises in marine mammal conservation.

Academic career

Constantine completed a PhD titled The behavioural ecology of the bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) of northeastern New Zealand: a population exposed to tourism at the University of Auckland in 2002.^[1] Constantine then joined the faculty, rising to full professor, and leader of the Marine Mammal Ecology Lab.^[2]

Constantine's research focuses on marine mammal conservation. Her research into accidental deaths of Bryde's whales in the Hauraki Gulf led to lower speed limits in shipping lanes to protect the whales.^[3] Constantine has also worked on Hector's and Māui dolphin threat management plans. In 2016 she co-led an expedition to the Kermadecs and her research has traced the migration patterns of humpback whales through Oceania, the Kermadec Islands and Antarctica.^[3][4]

Constantine is a member of the Executive Committee of the South Pacific Whale Consortium and co-founded a charitable trust to research technologies for marine conservation. Since 2010 Constantine has been Chair of the International Whaling Commission – Southern Ocean Research Partnership humpback whale research since 2010.^[3]

Honours and awards

Constantine's work on ship-strike of Bryde's whale won her one of three inaugural Holdaway Awards in 2013.^[5][6]

In the 2023 King's Birthday and Coronation Honours, Constantine was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to wildlife conservation and marine biology.^[3]

Selected works

• Rochelle Constantine; Dianne H Brunton; Todd Dennis (May 2004). "Dolphin-watching tour boats change bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) behaviour". Biological Conservation. 117 (3): 299–307. doi:10.1016/J.BIOCON.2003.12.009. ISSN 0006-3207. Wikidata Q55970324.
• Rochelle Constantine (October 2001). "Increased avoidance of swimmers by wild bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) due to long-term exposure to swim-with-dolphin tourism". Marine Mammal Science. 17 (4): 689–702. doi:10.1111/J.1748-7692.2001.TB01293.X. ISSN 0824-0469. Wikidata Q119080377.
• Ellen Garland; Anne W Goldizen; Melinda L Rekdahl; et al. (14 April 2011). "Dynamic horizontal cultural transmission of humpback whale song at the ocean basin scale". Current Biology. 21 (8): 687–691. doi:10.1016/J.CUB.2011.03.019. ISSN 0960-9822. PMID 21497089. Wikidata Q51601731.
• Mark Hindell; Ryan R Reisinger; Yan Ropert-Coudert; et al. (18 March 2020). "Tracking of marine predators to protect Southern Ocean ecosystems". Nature. 580 (7801): 87–92. doi:10.1038/S41586-020-2126-Y. ISSN 1476-4687. PMID 32238927. Wikidata Q90836193.

References