Melanie Lisa Jane Stiassny (born 17 January 1953 in Bielefeld, Germany) is the Axelrod Research Curator of Ichthyology at the American Museum of Natural History.
She is a member of the National Council of the World Wildlife Fund, the Advisory Council of Conservation International’s Center for Applied Biodiversity Science, the Advisory Board of National Geographic Society’s Conservation Trust,[1][3] and the Deutsche Cichliden Gesellschaft (DCG, German Cichlid Society).
Dr. Stiassny's early career began with large-scale and groundbreaking morphological studies exploring the evolution and relationships of the cichlids, labroids, and spiny-rayed fishes.
[4] Over a 10-year period, a multidisciplinary team led in part by Stiassny studied the complex ecosystems of the lower Congo River.
[10][11] Dr. Stiassny was the lead curator for the renovation of the American Museum of Natural History's Irma and Paul Milstein Family Hall of Ocean Life, which reopened its doors in 2003.