Allison Alberts
{{Short description|American biologist}}
Allison Christine Alberts (born October 13, 1960) is an American herpetologist and conservation biologist. She began her career at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance in 1990 as a postdoctoral fellow, eventually serving as the zoo's Chief Conservation Officer and Benirschke Chair of Research from 2005 to 2020, the first woman in that role.{{Cite web |date=2005-12-24 |title=Zoo names new director of conservation and research |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2005/12/24/zoo-names-new-director-of-conservation-and-research/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241027023159/https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2005/12/24/zoo-names-new-director-of-conservation-and-research/ |archive-date=2024-10-27 |access-date= |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US}}{{Cite journal |last=Mascarelli |first=Amanda |date=2013-06-12 |title=Ecology: Conservation in captivity |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/nj7453-261a |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=498 |issue=7453 |pages=261–263 |doi=10.1038/nj7453-261a |pmid=23776941 |issn=1476-4687}} She is known for her work with rock iguanas, Komodo dragons, sea turtles, desert tortoises, and native California lizards and snakes,{{Cite web |last=Murphy |first=James |date=2021-06-01 |title=Dedication to a Highly Productive Zoo Conservation Biologist and Herpetologist Who Serves as a Wonderful Model for all Persons in Our Profession – Allison C. Alberts, Ph.D. |url=https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/1vv40lzj91mtl0ev1qzz1/Pages-from-HR_June_2021_150dpi_ZooView.pdf?rlkey=meiw6rkr3ffu1wam4bi4a3mkm&dl=1 |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=2024-10-07 |website=Herpetological Review PDFs - Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles}} and she is the author of more than 100 scientific and popular articles and three books.{{Cite web |title=Allison Alberts |url=https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Det1rTIAAAAJ&hl=en |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=Google Scholar}}
Education
Alberts received her B.A. in biology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1982 and her Ph.D. from the University of California at San Diego in 1989. Her dissertation focused on chemical communication in the desert iguana, including the first demonstration of visual sensitivity to ultraviolet light in a reptile species.{{Cite web |last=Cherfas |first=Jeremy |date=1989-07-22 |title=Ultraviolet vision brings lizard up to the mark |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12316742-500-science-ultraviolet-vision-brings-lizard-up-to-the-mark/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160413054108/https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12316742-500-science-ultraviolet-vision-brings-lizard-up-to-the-mark/ |archive-date=2016-04-13 |access-date= |website=New Scientist}}
Career
Alberts began her career at the San Diego Zoo in 1990, working primarily with the highly endangered rock iguanas of the Caribbean.{{Cite journal |last=Grant |first=Tandora |date=2001-12-01 |title=Allison Alberts: A Consumate Conservationst |url=https://journals.ku.edu/iguana/article/view/17048/15330 |access-date= |journal=Iguana|volume=10 |issue=4 |pages=142–144 }} She led a team that conducted a decade of research on the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, using the Cuban iguana as a model species. The work focused on headstarting, temporary alteration of social structure to enhance genetic diversity, and educational outreach to base residents.{{Cite web |last=Perry |first=Tony |date=1995-09-05 |title=San Diego Zoo Comes to Aid of Embattled Iguana |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-05-mn-42457-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241007182938/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-05-mn-42457-story.html |archive-date=2024-10-07 |access-date= |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Randerson |first=James |date=2002-02-23 |title=No sex for you, we're trying to save the species |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg17323312-800-no-sex-for-you-were-trying-to-save-the-species/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160413054756/https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg17323312-800-no-sex-for-you-were-trying-to-save-the-species/ |archive-date=2016-04-13 |access-date= |website=New Scientist |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Houlihan |first=Bob |date=2021-08-01 |title=It Isn't Easy Being Green |url=https://media.defense.gov/2019/Apr/10/2002112830/-1/-1/1/AH200108.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241007183244/https://media.defense.gov/2019/Apr/10/2002112830/-1/-1/1/AH200108.pdf |archive-date=2024-10-07 |website=All Hands: Magazine of the U.S. Navy, pp. 28-35}}
In 2005, Alberts was named Chief Conservation Officer and Benirschke Chair of Research for San Diego Zoo Global (now San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance). During her tenure, the research staff grew to 200 science professionals working in 38 countries. Major initiatives included global species recovery programs, genetic banking, community-based conservation, and addressing wildlife trafficking and climate change.{{Cite web |title=The San Diego Zoo after 100 years |url=https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/2016/april/san-diego-zoo-100-years/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170616150354/https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/2016/april/san-diego-zoo-100-years/ |archive-date=2017-06-16 |access-date=2024-10-07 |website=San Diego History Center {{!}} San Diego, CA {{!}} Our City, Our Story |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=IUCN |date=2022-08-26 |title=San Diego Zoo Global {{!}} IUCN US National Committee |url=https://iucn-members.us/member-organization/san-diego-zoo-global/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241007200329/https://iucn-members.us/member-organization/san-diego-zoo-global/ |archive-date=2024-10-07 |access-date= |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2024-10-30 |title=San Diego Zoo Global Institute for Conservation Research: Saving Species Worldwide |url=https://science.sandiegozoo.org/sites/default/files/2019-ICR-Book-Pages-Email-10MB.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309191653/https://science.sandiegozoo.org/sites/default/files/2019-ICR-Book-Pages-Email-10MB.pdf |archive-date=2021-03-09 |website=science.sandiegozoo.org}} Since retiring from the Zoo in 2020, Alberts has served as Senior Advisor for the strategic planning firm Ecoleaders.{{Cite web |title=Our Network: Allison Alberts, Senior Advisor |url=https://ecoleaders.net/who-we-are |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241008003130/https://ecoleaders.net/who-we-are |archive-date=2024-10-08 |website=ecoleaders.net}}
Service
Alberts is co-founder and past co-chair of the IUCN – World Conservation Union Species Survival Commission Iguana Specialist Group.{{Cite web |last=Derr |first=Mark |date=2000-10-10 |title=In Caribbean, Endangered Iguanas Get Their Day |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/10/science/in-caribbean-endangered-iguanas-get-their-day.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113214908/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/10/science/in-caribbean-endangered-iguanas-get-their-day.html |archive-date=2012-11-13 |website=New York Times}} In 2015, she received the Athena Pinnacle Award for Excellence in recognition, promotion, and mentorship of women in the Life Sciences. Since 2018, Alberts has served on the advisory board of the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund. Her board service also includes the International Iguana Foundation, San Diego Natural History Museum, Center for Plant Conservation, and Turtle Survival Alliance.
Selected publications
- Alberts, A.C. (1989). Ultraviolet visual sensitivity in desert iguanas: Implications for pheromone detection. Animal Behaviour 38, 129–137.
- Alberts, A.C. (1992). Constraints on the design of chemical communication systems in terrestrial vertebrates. American Naturalist 139S, 62–59.
- Alberts, A.C. (2000). West Indian Iguanas: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN – The World Conservation Union, Gland Switzerland.
- Alberts, A.C., R.L. Carter, W.K. Hayes, and E.P. Martins. (2004). Iguanas: Biology and Conservation. University of California Press, Berkeley, California.
- Lemm, J.M. and A.C. Alberts. (2012). Cyclura: Natural History, Husbandry, and Conservation of the West Indian Rock Iguanas. Academic Press, Elsevier, San Diego, California.