Ari Friedlaender focuses much of his research on the foraging behavior of marine mammals and their interactions with prey. He works on a wide range of marine mammal species including baleen and toothed whales and dolphins across a range of geographic regions. In Antarctica, he is involved in the Long-Term Ecological Research program at Palmer Station, where he studies the ecological roles of cetaceans in a rapidly changing environment. As a principal investigator in the Southern Ocean Research Partnership, he leads non-lethal research on cetaceans in the Southern Ocean, contributing to a deeper understanding of marine ecosystems in this critical region.