Peter P. Marra

Peter P. Marra is an American ornithologist, conservationist, and educator. Marra is the Founding Director and Dean of the Earth Commons and a biology professor at Georgetown University. Marra is a former director of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. Marra is best known for his research on domesticated and feral cats and their impact on bird populations.

Career Marra earned a B.S. in biology and chemistry from Southern Connecticut State University, an M.S. in zoology from Louisiana State University in 1989, and a Ph.D. in ecology from Dartmouth College in 1998. From 1999 to 2019, Marra worked as a researcher and the director of the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center.

Marra was awarded the 2018 Elliott Coues Award for his contribution to ornithology.

Publications Among some 260+ publications authored, coauthored, or edited by Marra:

Linking Winter and Summer Events in a Migratory Bird by Using Stable-Carbon Isotopes (1998) DOI:10.1126/science.282.5395.1884 Links between worlds: unraveling migratory connectivity (2002) DOI:10.1016/S0169-5347(01)02380-1 The impact of free-ranging domestic cats on wildlife of the United States (2013) DOI:10.1038/ncomms2380 Cat Wars: The Devastating Consequences of a Cuddly Killer (2016) Decline of the North American avifauna (2019) DOI:10.1126/science.aaw1313