Sandro Mazzariol
ESVP-ECVP Congress
sandro.mazzariol@unipd.it
,
Sandro Mazzariol, DVM, PhD
Associate Professor of Veterinary Pathology
Department of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of Padova, Italy
Dr. Sandro Mazzariol is a veterinary pathologist with a specialization in marine mammal medicine, wildlife disease, and conservation. He currently serves as Full Professor of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Padova, Italy, where he leads both the Mediterranean Marine Mammals Tissue Bank and the Cetaceans strandings Emergency Response Team working with and the Italian National Reference Centre for Diagnostic Investigations on Stranded Marine Mammals (C.Re.Di.Ma.). He has been designated by the Italian Ministry for the Environment in the Steering Group of the Italian Stranding Network and he’s part of a working group established by the Ministry for Health in the implementation of the Animal Health Law on wildlife rescue and management.
Mazzariol’s academic and research activity centers around pathology and disease ecology of marine fauna, particularly cetaceans and pinnipeds. His work has contributed significantly to the understanding of mass stranding events, infectious diseases (such as morbillivirus outbreaks), and the impact of anthropogenic pressures on marine wildlife health. He is recognized as an expert in post-mortem investigations of marine mammals, integrating pathology with conservation science and environmental monitoring.
Over the course of his career, he has participated in more than 30 competitive research projects, of which he has coordinated 12 as Principal Investigator. These include several EU-funded initiatives (LIFE, H2020, INTERREG) and national programs commissioned by the Italian Ministry of the Environment, focusing on biodiversity conservation, environmental risk assessment, and surveillance of emerging marine diseases.
His research output includes over 115 peer-reviewed scientific publications, as well as numerous book chapters, reports, and technical guidelines for government agencies and international conservation bodies. He collaborates actively with ACCOBAMS (Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area) leading the post-mortem investigations capacity building programs; the International Whaling Commission (IWC) where he acted as Chair of the Stranding Expert Panel between 2017 and 2022; IUCN, being part of the Species Survival Commission for Cetaceans, contributing to regional and global efforts in e mammal health management. Dr. Mazzariol serve on governmental expert panels, and advise institutional decision-making processes related to environmental policy.
In his academic role, Dr. Mazzariol teaches general and special pathology within veterinary programs at undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels. He also supervises PhD and master’s students and provides professional training to veterinarians and environmental officers across Europe. He is deeply engaged in science communication, education, and stakeholder engagement, contributing to public awareness on issues of wildlife biodiversity and conservation.
Through his unique integration of diagnostic pathology, veterinary science, and conservation biology, Dr. Mazzariol continues to shape best practices in the management and protection of marine species, making a lasting impact on both veterinary pathology and the broader field of ocean and environmental health.
