Islay Marsden

Islay Diane Marsden is a New Zealand academic marine biologist and toxicologist, and is a professor emerita at the University of Canterbury. Marsden's research focuses on Crustacea and bivalves. She has researched physiology of oxygen uptake and energy use, and is also interested in environmental factors that affect survival and reproduction of estuarine species, and the cultural values of estuarine habitats.

Academic career
Marsden is a marine biologist and toxicologist. She is interested in physiological ecology of marine invertebrates, and focuses especially on molluscs and Crustacea. She has worked on understanding adaptations that allow survival in intertidal habitats, looking at traits such as oxygen uptake, and energy use. She has also worked on how environmental factors such as microplastics, heavy metals, and toxins from certain dinoflagellates have on the reproduction and survival of marine and estuarine species. She has also published on the use of marine invertebrate populations as indicators of environmental stress. Marsden is interested in mahinga kai (the value of natural resources ) and the cultural values of estuaries and beaches in New Zealand.

Marsden completed her PhD at the University of London in 1974. She then joined the faculty of the University of Canterbury, rising to full professor. She was appointed professor emerita in 2019. Marsden is on the board of the Avon-Heathcote Estuary Ihutai Trust. She is on the international advisory board of the Journal of Biological Education, and was a general council member of the New Zealand Marine Sciences Society until 2020.