If the zoo community had an Oscars, it would be the esteemed annual British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) Awards. And we’re incredibly excited to share that, yet again, we’ve picked up a raft of honours at this year’s awards!
In fact, our talented team are celebrating a total of EIGHT BIAZA Awards for their remarkable research and conservation projects.
The highly coveted Outstanding Achievement Award goes to…
We’re thrilled to share that Dr Veronica Cowl (Ronnie), our Reproductive Biology Coordinator here at the zoo, received the prestigious Outstanding Achievement Award!
This coveted prize was awarded for all of Ronnie’s impactful and innovative research over the last year, from artificially inseminating endangered civets to publishing papers on the potential of cloning in endangered species conservation, and we couldn’t be prouder.
Not only that, Ronnie was awarded the Runner-up in Professional Capacity Building for her Reproductive Management Massive Open Online Course: a free course that aims to improve the sustainability of animal management, both in the wild and for species under human care, by providing an overview of what reproductive management is and how it may be brought into veterinary and management decision-making.
Dr Veronica Cowl said:
“It’s a huge honour to be awarded the BIAZA Outstanding Achievement award. I’m incredibly lucky that I get to do a job I love, a job with purpose, surrounded by a community that inspires and teaches me every day.”
“It’s also wonderful to be awarded the runner-up award for the Reproductive Management course. To date, we’ve had over 1,500 people sign up for access to the course from all around the world. It was a huge labour of love, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve managed to achieve.”
Discover more about Ronnie’s work here.
Giant Pangolin Project wins GOLD!
Giant pangolins are one of the world’s most elusive and heavily trafficked mammals. In fact, there’s only a handful of people on the planet studying them.
We’re proud to say that this includes our very own Uganda team — Naomi Matthews, Stu Nixon, Sam Isoke, and Geoffrey Ocaya — who took home the Winner in Field Conservation for their Giant Pangolin Project!
This dedicated team are now working to monitor pangolins remotely and in real time in Uganda’s Murchison Falls National Park, helping to not only better understand this rare species but also deter illegal poaching and significantly improve response times to threats when detected.
Naomi Matthews, Africa Survey and Biomonitoring Coordinator, said:
“Over the last six years, our team has worked tirelessly to uncover crucial information about the conservation status of giant pangolins in Uganda, which is helping to inform conservation strategies.”
“This award is a testament to the fantastic team of people working on the project and the strong partnerships we have formed on the ground, such as with the Uganda Wildlife Authority. It is a collective success that we hope will not only help to protect pangolins in Uganda but also provide valuable insights to aid their conservation across their entire range.”
Sam Isoke, Field Supervisor for the giant pangolin project, added:
“Our pangolin project is very special to me because it is so unique to study an animal which is so difficult to find and has so little research on it already.”
“The project means a lot to me as it has changed my life through new opportunities and experiences, such as travelling to the UK for the first time and working with other great scientists at Chester Zoo and partners, including Uganda Wildlife Authority, Fauna & Flora and USAID.”
Saving the ‘Forest Giraffe’ — GOLD!
Supporting the breeding for one of the rarest mammals in the world, the unique okapi or ‘forest giraffe’, John O’Hanlon and our lab team’s innovative study on okapi reproductive hormones clinched the Winner in Research!
Their innovative work made effective use of routine, non-invasive faecal samples to detect oestrus and early gestation in okapi, which is a huge step forward to help improve the management of populations under human care and provide this species with a much-needed boost in numbers.
John O’Hanlon, Laboratory Technician, shared his pride in the achievement:
“Following on from our publication in 2023, it was amazing to win the BIAZA research award for our work. We’ve been studying the reproductive hormones of our okapi here at Chester Zoo since 2013, and our work has allowed us to support the wider breeding programme through our Wildlife Endocrinology Diagnostic Laboratory.”
“Our method of detecting early gestation in okapi has allowed us to confirm over 11 pregnancies in 5 BIAZA institutions, fed into the EAZA best practice guidelines for the species and is freely accessible in our open access paper, helping to further share our scientific knowledge with the community.”
Our Runners Up
In addition to these accolades, we were excited to also receive several Runners-up Awards for a variety of projects:
- For our efforts to make Chester Zoo as sustainable as possible, Jen Kelly, Our Head of Sustainability, and several teams across our charity received the Runner-up Award in Sustainability for their comprehensive initiatives to reduce our environmental impact.
- Our research into helping to protect Asian elephants from EEHV using immunostimulants, which is being conducted by one of our Conservation Scholars, Jonathan Haycock, under the supervision of Dr Javier Lopez and Dr Katie Edwards, received the Runner-up Prize in Research.
- Our efforts in animal care and education also received commendations, with Jonathon Bielby and the Bird Team receiving the Runner-up Award in Animal Husbandry, Care and Breeding for their vital efforts to help conserve the collared trogon.
- Our Planet Shark Exhibition and Education programme, which not only showcased the beauty of our underwater world but also raised awareness of marine conservation issues, received the Runner-up Award in Education. You can now witness the beauty of UK wildlife and learn more about what you can do to protect it in the new ‘Native’ exhibit.
We’re incredibly proud of our talented and passionate staff here at Chester Zoo and, thanks to your incredible support, we’ll continue to help create a world where wildlife and people thrive together.
OUR TEAM OF EXPERTS WORK IN SIX REGIONS AROUND THE GLOBE – REPRESENTING SOME OF THE PLANET’S MOST BIODIVERSE HABITATS. Discover more about our SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION work.