Tom Iliffe is a Professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M University, Galveston. He is a graduate of Penn State University, Florida State University, and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. Prior to coming to Texas A&M, Tom was employed for 11 years at the Bermuda Biological Station where he combined his skills in cave diving and marine biology. His research now includes studies of the ecology, biodiversity, and conservation of similar anchialine cave ecosystems from the Caribbean, East Atlantic, Mediterranean, Indian, and South Pacific Oceans. He has published more than 250 journal articles and book chapters, and discovered over 250 new species of marine cave-adapted invertebrates. His research has been featured in TV documentaries by Netflix, BBC, National Geographic, and others.