Kit Kovacs is a marine mammal researcher, best known for her work on biology, conservation and management of whales and seals.
[5][6] During her 30-year-long research career,[5][7] Kovacs has studied marine mammal population ecology, biology conservation and management, including satellite tagging of bowhead whales since 2010,[8] the biopsy sampling of whales since 2006,[9] and extensive research on seals[10] Kovacs has published over 300 publications, receiving over 18,000 citations, resulting in an h-index and i10-index of 69 and 226 respectively.
[5] She now plays an advisory role as Past President for Life, and is currently serving her second term as the Chair of the IUCN's Pinniped Specialist Group.
[20] Kovacs has held offices of Chairman to the Academic User's Board of the Huntsman Marine Science Centre (1985– 1992), a member of the Board of Directors for the Huntsman Marine Science Centre (1990–1994), was the secretary of the Canadian National Council for the International Union of Biological Studies (NSERC) from 1989 to 1992, and editorial board Member for the Canadian Journal of Zoology from 1990 to 1994, a board member for the Arctic Light and Heat (ALV) Programme from Jan 1997– December 31, 2002, at the Norwegian National Research Council, the president of the International Society for Marine Mammalogy from 2004 to 2006 and is still a member of its scientific advisory council[21] and conservation council,[21] a member of the Arctic Climate Biodiversity's[22] Impact Assessment Working Group,[23] as well as a contributing author to the ACIA (Arctic Climate Impact Assessment) report in Chapter 9: Marine Systems[24] and Chapter 11: Management and Conservation of Wildlife in a Changing Arctic Environment.
Kovacs was an International coordinator for the Ringed Seal Circumpolar Network at the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) from 2000 to 2008,[30][31] a member and leader of the Impacts on Sea Ice Reductions in the NorACIA (Norwegian Arctic Climate Impact Assessment) – Group III, as well as a member of the Barend Sea Advisory Group at NorACIA.