Jason Turner, Associate Professor of Marine Science

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Associate Professor Turner is a large vertebrate ecologist with a research focus on marine mammals, sea turtles, and fishes, including sharks.

Jason Turner leans out of dingy holding a small shark in the water. At right is Turner and student with larger tiger shark off the back of a dingy.
At left is Associate Professor of Marine Science Jason Turner doing a work up on young tiger shark. At right, Turner and student Bryan Sawyer conduct work up on larger tiger shark. (Photo courtesy of Jason Turner; animal interaction is under state and/or federal permits)

Posted July 14, 2026.

Jason Turner is an associate professor of marine science at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. He is a large vertebrate ecologist who focuses on food webs and feeding; his research primarily focuses on the study of marine mammals, sea turtles, and fishes, including sharks.

“I have been studying populations of fishes including sharks, sea turtles and humpback whales and asking questions about habitat use and movement patterns,” he says.

Turner also recently finished and published a study assessing habitat use of juvenile blacktip sharks in Hilo Bay.

Turner received his master of science (1998) and doctorate (2004) in wildlife and fisheries sciences from Texas A&M University. His master’s thesis was on bottlenose dolphins and doctoral dissertation on using fatty acids as bioindicators in fishes and invertebrates in pelagic foodwebs. He arrived at UH Hilo in 2005 and received a UH System Frances Davis Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2007.

“I’ve been fortunate to have worked with a lot of amazing animals,” he says. “I helped rescue a huge hawksbill sea turtle from a pond at Punaluʻu, have worked close to humpback whales and spinner dolphins, measured and released several large tiger sharks, and am probably one of the only people on the planet who has hand-fed a Blainville’s beaked whale.”

It’s exciting work, and most importantly to Turner, at the core of it all is a deep dedication to placed-based research and education, with a unwavering respect for Native Hawaiian ways of gaining scientific knowledge.

Development of a model for integrating Western science and Hawaiian science in the management of protected marine species

Turner says his most significant scholarly contribution is not a peer-reviewed scientific publication, but rather the development of a model for integrating Western science and Hawaiian science in the management of protected marine species, including marine mammals and sharks.

“This work was developed more than 15 years ago in collaboration with Dr. Roxane Keliʻikipikāneokolohaka, poʻo (executive director) of Kiaʻi Kanaloa, a Native Hawaiian organization, and a University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo marine science alumna,” Associate Professor Turner explains. The mission of Kiaʻi Kanaloa is to guide the respectful cultural care and transition of stranded or distressed marine mammals. “Although the model has been presented publicly and described in written works, its greatest impact has been through its application in education and conservation practice.”

Two people in holding tank with whale.
Jason Turner and Roxane Keliʻikipikāneokolohaka examine a Blainviles beaked whale that had beached in 2010. (Photo courtesy of Jason Turner; animal interaction is under state and/or federal permits)
Some info about key components of a successful partnership: maintaining trust and learning from one another.
An excerpt from the presentation, “Pūlama Kanaloa: A model for integrated and collaborative marine mammal response program,” given at the 2015 Hawaiʻi Conservation Conference. Click for full size.

“Since its development,” continues Turner, “we have incorporated this ‘Indigenist Model’ — a framework that guides Western-trained science students in integrating Hawaiian science — into several University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo courses, including Natural History of Sharks and Rays (MARE 380), Biology of Marine Mammals (MARE 390), Marine Policy (MARE 423), and Kaipapau: Introduction to Marine Science Inquiry, a course we developed specifically around this approach.”

While not published as classic peer-reviewed work, this integrated model was featured in an article in Hana Hou magazine in 2011, “Saving Kanaloa: Inside the Hawai’i Cetacean Rehabilitation Facility.”

The model was later presented in 2015 by Turner and Stewart (Keliʻikipikāneokolohaka’s former last name) at the Hawaiʻi Conservation Conference, with their presentation titled, “Pūlama Kanaloa: A model for integrated and collaborative marine mammal response program.”

In 2021, Turner and Keliʻikipikāneokolohaka presented their model twice as keynote speakers: at the Kūlia e Uli: World Oli Movement with their presentation titled, “Nākolokolo Ka Hā: Transcending Beyond The Bridge,” and at the Kūlia e Uli: World Oli Movement with their presentation titled, “Nākolokolo Ka Hā: Transcending Beyond The Bridge.”

Jason Turner (top right) and Roxane Keliʻikipikāneokolohaka (bottom left) with volunteers assisting (primarily students) with vet exam of Blainviles beaked whale in 2010. (Photo courtesy of Jason Turner, animal interaction is under state and/or federal permits)

The Indigenist model has had its share of conflict, as discussed by two other scholars in a peer-reviewed published paper, “The story of Wānanalua: Stranded whales and contested marine sovereignties in Hawaiʻi” (Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space, 2020), authored by environmental geographer Max Ritts (Clark University, MA) and political ecologist Sarah M. Wiebe (University of Victoria). “That was in regards to the conflict that followed between NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) and Roxane’s Indigenous practice, with our model caught in he middle,” says Turner. “It’s part of the story.”

But the initiative has survived.

“We continue to apply and refine this model through Kiaʻi Kanaloa, which now serves as the federally authorized permit holder for responding to stranded whales and dolphins throughout Hawaiʻi,” adds Turner. “The model has therefore had enduring influence in both university education and the practical management of protected marine species.”

Developing field-based labs that give students hands-on experience in marine biology

Turner places great emphasis on providing mentorship for his students, often as thesis advisor. With his students involved in all of his research, Turner’s “field work” — from ocean ponds to the open sea — is often adventurous and inspiring for his nascent marine scientists.

As a follow-up to the recent study cited earlier in this profile on habitat use of juvenile blacktip sharks in Hilo Bay, Turner and his student research team are now working on another investigation looking at long-term patterns in humpback whale populations outside of Hilo Bay.

Looking to the future, Turner has written several classes with field-based labs that give students hands-on experience in marine biology. “Whether doing boat-based surveys for humpback whales, counting and sizing sea turtles while snorkeling, or catching, measuring and releasing sharks, my goal is to keep offering these field experiences as often as possible.”

By Susan Enright, public information specialist for the Office of the Chancellor and editor of Keaohou and UH Hilo Stories. She received her bachelor of arts in English and certificate in women’s studies from UH Hilo.