Christina Biggs

Christina Biggs is a marine ecologist, expedition leader, and conservation strategist with over 20 years of experience advancing biodiversity discovery. She has directed more than 50 expeditions worldwide, from deep-sea ROV surveys in Monterey Bay to biodiversity assessments in Africa, Indonesia, and the Americas.

As Exploration Director at Re:wild, Christina designed and led the organization’s Search for Lost Species, curating a 4,500-species list with IUCN specialists, and overseeing dozens of rediscoveries. She co-chaired the IUCN SSC Lost Species Task Force and the Specimen Collection Policy Council, advised the IUCN Biodiversity Assessment Unit on integrating eDNA data into Red List assessments, and served on the Technical Council of ReShark.

Previously, Christina was Senior Researcher at the Monterey Bay Aquarium/Research Institute, where she was Chief Scientist on deep-sea missions aboard the R/Vs Western Flyer and Rachel Carson, documenting undescribed invertebrates, mapping seafloor habitats, and helping design the $17M Into the Deep exhibit. At Shedd Aquarium, she advanced cephalopod aquaculture and reef monitoring across the Bahamas and U.S. East Coast.

Her publications span Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, Global Change Biology, Animal Conservation, Environmental DNA, and the Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. She has been an invited speaker at the World Species Congress, the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology, and the Shark Conservation Fund.

A National Fellow of The Explorers Club, Christina carried a Flag on her 2025 Galápagos expedition that confirmed the rediscovery of a lost coral and piloted new diver-towed eDNA collection methods. She continues to lead cutting-edge biodiversity projects as a consultant with RIDGES Foundation.

September 2025