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Pyenson, Nicholas

Pyenson, Nicholas

Lead Curator, Chair, and Curator of Fossil Marine Mammals

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Pyenson, Nicholas

Lead Curator, Chair, and Curator of Fossil Marine Mammals

Evolution and ecology of marine mammals and other marine tetrapods

Geographic Focus

Background And Education

Education And Training

Professional Biography

  • Dr. Nicholas Pyenson is lead curator, chair, and curator of fossil marine mammals in the Department of Paleobiology at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. In the past decade, he has worked with and trained over 25 scientists on every continent, collaborating on discoveries that appear frequently in the New York Times, Washington Post, as well as on NPR, CBC, and the BBC. Along with the highest research awards from the Smithsonian, he has also received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from the Obama White House. He is also a National Geographic Explorer, a former Kavli Fellow at the National Academies of Sciences, and has worked with the World Economic Forum. He is also the author of the acclaimed non-fiction book Spying on Whales, and co-author with science illustrator Alex Boersma of the children’s book The Whale Who Swam Through Time. He has degrees from Emory University, the University of California, Berkeley, and completed a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia.

Awards And Honors

Public Biography

  • DR. NICK PYENSON is the lead curator, department chair, and curator of fossil marine mammals at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. His work has taken him to every continent, and his scientific discoveries appear frequently in the New York Times, the Washington Post, National Geographic, The Economist, Popular Mechanics, as well as on NPR, CBC, and the BBC. Along with the highest research awards from the Smithsonian, he has also received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from the Obama White House. He is also a National Geographic Explorer and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Young Scientists community. He is the author of the acclaimed non-fiction book Spying on Whales, and co-author with science illustrator Alex Boersma of the children’s book The Whale Who Swam Through Time.

International Audience Summary Of Expertise

  • Dr. Nick Pyenson is a paleontologist who studies how marine animals, such as whales, sea cows, and sea turtles have evolved over millions of years. He uses information from the fossil record and the anatomy of these animals to understand how the evolved and their ecology in the world today. Many marine animals are important to human cultures, and some are highly threatened by human activities. Understanding the evolution and ecology of these species will contribute to better knowing how they will respond to global climate change.

    Dr. Pyenson’s scientific expeditions have taken him to every continent. For him, international collaborations are essential for accomplishing the basic research, but also for: building scientific research capacity; mentoring the next generation of scientists; and communicating what we know about the deep history of life on Earth.

    The results of his team’s discoveries have been published extensively, including cover articles in the prestigious journals Science and Nature. Along with his collaborators, he has named over nearly a dozen new species of fossil vertebrates, discovered the richest fossil whale graveyard on the planet in the Atacama of Chile, and described an entirely new sensory organ in living whales. 

    His research has received the highest awards from the Smithsonian, and he has also received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from President Obama’s White House. Dr. Pyenson’s popular book describing his research, Spying on Whales, was featured on US television and radio, and included in many best science book compilations. It will soon be available in Russian and Chinese language editions.

    He completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia, he received his doctoral degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and he has a bachelor’s degree from Emory University. Pyenson is also a member of the Young Scientists community at the World Economic Forum.

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Research And Grants

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Responsible Collections Areas

  • Fossil marine mammals and Paleogene mammals

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