Toni Frohoff

Toni Frohoff is an ethologist and behavioral biologist who has specialized in cetaceans for over 30 years. She has distinctive expertise in studying and addressing the psychological wellbeing of cetaceans in captivity and in the wild. Toni is the founder and Research Director for Terramar Research, recognized for advancing interspecies science and advocacy for animals and nature.

Toni’s M.S., Ph.D., and subsequent research have also focused on human interactions with cetaceans in the wild, including individuals such as solitary bottlenose dolphins, belugas and orcas. More recently, she has also studied elephant behavior and welfare in captivity and in the wild. Having formalized the concept of Interspecies Collaborative Research (Frohoff and Marino), her work promotes respect for the agency and wellbeing of the animals she studies.

Toni has co-authored two books on cetaceans (most recently Dolphin Mysteries: Unlocking the Secrets of Communication; Yale University Press). She has written numerous scientific papers and popular articles and has contributed to more than two-dozen books and encyclopedias. She lectures widely and her work has been featured extensively in documentaries and international media fora, including the New York Times, NPR, Animal Planet, BBC, National Geographic, TED, Time Magazine and Smithsonian Magazine.

Toni continues to serve as a consultant to a wide variety of private, government and nonprofit organizations. She has served on government and non-government task forces, boards and committees, and her work has contributed to the revision and implementation of management and legislation protecting marine mammals in captivity and in the wild in more than a dozen countries.