It is a pleasure to introduce ACZM's newest honorary member. Dr. Ridgway is one of the founding fathers of marine mammal medicine, having completed the lion's share of the seminal work in marine mammal medicine, while continuing to this day to promote both applied and basic research in the field of marine mammalogy. He has published over 250 papers, book chapters and books, including one of the most definitive works on marine mammals, Mammals of the Sea, published in 1972.
Dr. Ridgway completed his DVM at Texas A&M in 1959 and his PhD in 1962 from Cambridge University. He has spent his entire career working for the US Navy Marine Mammal Program and is currently the Senior Scientist for Animal Care and Research. Dr. Ridgway has served on 14 PhD committees and has personally trained over 25 veterinarians through two to six year tours of duty in the US Navy Marine Mammal Program. He was founding president of the International Association for Aquatic Animal Medicine, and has been a scientific advisor on the Marine Mammal Commission and the National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences. He is currently Adjunct Professor of Comparative Pathology at the Medical School, University of California, San Diego. Dr Ridgway served for over 5 years on the Board of Trustees of the Zoological Society of San Diego chairing their Animal Health Committee.
Dr. Ridgway and his Jeanette have resided in the beautiful seaside town of Point Loma, San Diego for the past 33 years. Jeanette possesses a doctorate in English literature and has taught at the UCLA, UCSD, and San Diego State Universities. The timing of nomination of Dr. Sam Ridgway is ideal, having recently gone into semi-retirement with the Navy Marine Mammal Program and then taken a leadership role in the cooperative veterinary medicine program between UCSD and UCD.
Thomas H. Reidarson, DVM, Dipl. ACZM
Senior Staff Veterinarian
Director of Veterinary Services
SeaWorld of San Diego
Pat Morris DVM, Dipl. ACZM
Senior Veterinarian
San Diego Zoo