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Harrison, Autumn-Lynn

Harrison, Autumn-Lynn

Research Ecologist

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Harrison, Autumn-Lynn

Research Ecologist

Autumn-Lynn's expertise is on migratory species, movement ecology, and conservation, primarily of ocean megafauna and North American birds. She leads multiple collaborative research programs including the Migratory Connectivity Project and the Shorebird Science and  Conservation Collective that range from discovery science to directly informing conservation practice and policy. She is a founder of Move BON, a global animal movement biodiversity observation network, and is a lead of the pan-Smithsonian Movement of Life initiative. Her research program focuses on science with conservation and policy applications. Through her extensive experience leading field expeditions around the world, she integrates natural history with modern technologies and ecological disciplines like like animal tracking and movement ecology.

Positions

Geographic Focus

Background And Education

Education And Training

Awards And Honors

Public Biography

  • Autumn-Lynn Harrison is a Research Ecologist and co-lead of the Center for Conservation Innovation and Technology, Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute where she focuses on movement ecology and conservation applications. Her main expertise is on the ecology and conservation of ocean and coastal migratory species, including seabirds, shorebirds, and seals and she leads multiple collaborative research programs including the Migratory Connectivity Project and the Shorebird Science and  Conservation Collective. She is a founder of Move BON, a global animal movement biodiversity observation network, and is a lead of the pan-Smithsonian Movement of Life initiative. 

    Autumn-Lynn conducts field research using a range of animal tracking technologies, and applies her research to many conservation questions, including contributing to United Nations efforts to identify ecologically significant areas for migratory marine animals in international waters. Autumn-Lynn has led scientific research in Alaska, California, Texas, and Maryland in the United States, and Australia, Argentina, Philippines, and South Africa. 

    Harrison earned B.S. Degrees in Environmental Science and Fisheries and Wildlife Science from Virginia Tech, a Graduate Diploma of Science in Tropical Marine Ecology and Fisheries Science from James Cook University in Townsville, Australia, and a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz where she was a part of the Tagging of Pacific Predators initiative of the Census of Marine Life.

    Previously, Harrison was with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (2014-2025), and prior to joining the Smithsonian, Harrison worked for the Society for Conservation Biology for 11 years and as a postdoctoral fellow with the Institute for Parks at Clemson University. At Clemson, she studied Bahamanian seabird migration and developed a "big-data" digital humanities project with historical archives of the U.S. National Park Service. She is also a trained park naturalist and graphic designer and has developed and led training workshops in interpretation and graphic design for the Tanzania National Parks Authority and the David H. Smith Conservation Research Fellows. Autumn-Lynn grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland with family roots in the Chesapeake Bay region going back to 1655.

International Audience Summary Of Expertise

  • Autumn-Lynn Harrison is a conservation biologist and movement ecologist at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute who uses animal tracking technologies to study the movements, connectivity and habitat use of migratory species (primarily marine megafauna and coastal and marine birds), and translates this science for conservation and policy applications.

Research And Grants

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Keywords

  • ocean, migration, seabirds, shorebirds, seals, animal movement, movement ecology, marine conservation, avian conservation

Publications

Selected Publications

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