Peter D. Roopnarine, Curator
Peter D. Roopnarine, Curator
Department of Invertebrate Zoology & Geology
California Academy of Sciences
55 Music Concourse Drive
San Francisco CA 94118

Peter Roopnarine studied biology at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, Canada, where he developed an interest in marine systems and ecology. He received a B.Sc. in 1984, and then his M.S. in Ocean Sciences at Nova University Oceanographic Center in 1988. Graduate work on molluscs lead to a developing interest in paleontology, so he went on to receive a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of California at Davis in 1994. After Davis, he held an Assistant Professorship in Biology at Southeast Missouri State University for three years, but then moved to the University of Arizona as a research associate. Peter later moved to San Francisco in 1999 to join the California Academy of Sciences as the Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology and Geology. His research interests include molluscan systematics and evolutionary paleoecology, the quantification of patterns and rates of evolution in the fossil record, life in extreme environments, and the dynamics of extinction in paleo-food webs. His other interests include Linux, martial arts, single malts, and his daughter Rhiannon.