October 3, 1916 – Birth of Pioneering Research Biologist María de los Ángeles Alvariño González

María de los Ángeles Alvariño González, born in Spain on this day in history, became a fishery research biologist, oceanographer, and globally recognized authority in plankton biology. She was the first woman ever appointed as scientist aboard any British or Spanish exploration ships. She discovered 22 new species of marine animals and published over a hundred scientific books, chapters and articles. In her late career she studied the history of early marine scientific exploration.

María de los Ángeles Alvariño González via Wikipedia

She faced a number of barriers as a woman. For example, she was not allowed to pursue further research studies at the Spanish Institute of Oceanography in Madrid because of a Spanish law that prohibited women aboard Navy Spanish vessels. However, because she had outstanding academic credentials, she was allowed to take some courses and do some research. In 1951 she received a graduate diploma in Experimental Psychology, Analytical Chemistry and Plant Ecology from the Complutense University of Madrid.

In 1953 she received a scholarship from the British Council to conduct research on zooplankton in the Marine Biological Association laboratory at Plymouth, England. By studying the plankton of the English Channel and in the Bay of Biscay, her work led to the discovery of some anomalies in the distribution of plankton species which led to the scientific conclusion that the Atlantic waters had moved poleward in an unusual way.

In 1956, she received a fellowship from the Fulbright Commission to conduct scientific work at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Her impressive research led to a position as a Biologist at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, part of the University of California San Diego. There she studied the zooplankton off the coast of California as well as the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. During this period she discovered a number of new species.

In January 1970, she was appointed a position as Fisheries Research Biologist at the prestigious Southwest Fisheries Science Center (which is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). In the later 1970s, Alvariño worked to coordinate oceanic research among Latin American nations, and she studied the Antarctic. During this period she received various grants from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and from the United National Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

She retired as Emeritus Scientist in 1993 but continued to conduct research on seagoing vessels hosted by various countries.

She died on May 29, 2005.

In recognition of her outstanding scientific career, in 1993 Ángeles Alvarinño received the Great Silver Medal of Galicia from King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sophia of Spain. The University of A Coruña dedicated the Week of Sciences to her in 2005, and the City of Ferrol paid a posthumous tribute in the Campus of Esteiro, where a commemorative plaque honors one of the most prominent women scientists in the world.