A professional who studies plants and animals living in water, and environmental conditions affecting them. Responsibilities include:

• Investigates salinity, temperature, acidity, light, oxygen content, and other physical conditions of water to determine their relationship to aquatic life.
• Examines various types of water life, such as plankton, worms, clams, mussels, and snails.
• May specialize in study of salt water aquatic life and be designated Marine Biologist; or fresh water aquatic life and be designated Limnologist.
• May specialize in culture, breeding, and raising of aquatic life, such as shrimp, lobsters, clams, oysters, or fish, and commercial fish farm operations and be designated Aquaculturist.