The Joseph Grinnell Medal is awarded twice a decade to researchers who exemplify the traits that Grinnell himself embodied: a commitment to natural history research, and a scientific creativity to describe new concepts. Past recipients have been Dr. George A. Bartholomew, Dr. James H. Brown, Dr. David B. Wake, Dr. Peter R. Grant and Dr. B. Rosemary Grant (Co-medalists).

Dr. Mike Ryan has made several seminal contributions throughout his career to animal behavior and evolutionary biology, all based upon the use of basic vertebrate natural history to explore important conceptual issues in behavior. He has made special contributions to the fields of the costs of sexual selection, role of phylogeny in behavioral research, and neurobiology of sexual selection.