Vivienne Foroughirad

Vivienne Foroughirad is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Marine Biology at Texas A&M University at Galveston. Her research focuses on the behavioral ecology of cetaceans, particularly how social environments influence survival and reproduction in bottlenose dolphins. She leads the Foroughirad Lab, which investigates topics such as social inheritance mechanisms, kinship dynamics, and climate change impacts using long-term observational studies, genetics, and simulations.

Education: Ph.D. in Marine Science & Conservation from Duke University (2019), B.S. in Biology from Georgetown University (2010).

Research Interests: Behavioral ecology, cetacean social dynamics, evolutionary processes, climate change resilience, and ecological inheritance. Her lab leverages data from the Shark Bay Dolphin Project, a 40-year study in Australia, to explore non-genetic inheritance and social network structures.

Key Findings: Her work examines how ecological pressures shape social behaviors, including maternal effects on ecological niches, climate-driven mortality risks, and the role of social learning in survival. Recent studies highlight links between breathing synchrony and respiratory disease risk in dolphins.

Awards & Recognition: None explicitly listed, though her lab members have won grants such as the Animal Behavior Society awards (2025).

Lab & Collaborations: The Foroughirad Lab includes graduate and undergraduate researchers focusing on cetacean genetics, social networks, and conservation. Collaborators include institutions like Georgetown University and the Shark Bay Dolphin Project team. The lab emphasizes open science practices, using GitHub to enhance reproducibility in ecological research.