David Caron PhD

Dave Caron is a professor in the marine environmental biology section of the department of biological sciences at the University of Southern California, where he has served as section head, department chair, and as interim director of the Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies. He has a B.S. in microbiology and an M.S. in oceanography from the University of Rhode Island, and a Ph.D. in biological oceanography conferred jointly by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

His research focuses on understanding the ecological and biogeochemical roles of phytoplankton and protozoa in marine and freshwater ecosystems. He has conducted studies in locations ranging from mountain lakes to major oceanic gyres, polar coastal sea and deep-sea hydrothermal vents. He is a recipient of the Mary Sears Endowed Chair for Excellence in Biological Oceanography (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), the Seymour H. Hutner Young Investigator Prize (Society of Protozoologists) and the Albert S. Raubenheimer Award for excellence in teaching, research and service (University of Southern California). He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Microbiology.