Earthwatch Award Recipient Summary
Awardee: Tigga Kingston, Ph.D
Affiliation: Boston University
Project: Malaysian Bat Conservation
Award: 2003 Young Scientist Award
Project Synopsis
Dr. Tigga Kingston and Earthwatch teams are monitoring the diversity of bats found in the pristine lowland tropical rainforest of central Malaysia's Krau Wildlife Reserve. This 30-million-year-old forest is bursting with life, including 150 species of mammals and the greatest diversity of insect-eating bats in the world. Many of these bats are threatened or endangered by habitat loss, and Kingston and colleagues of the Malaysian Bat Conservation Research Unit are assessing their conservation needs. Using harp traps, banding, and radio-tracking techniques, Kingston's team has been able to map key habitat features, such as roosting sites, and monitor population patterns. They have captured more than 7,000 bats, including 62 of the estimated 70 bat species in the region. There efforts are integral to Malaysia meeting its obligation to assess wildlife habitat needs under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Award Outcomes
The Young Scientist Award allowed Dr. Kingston to:
· Support a master's degree student and valuable field assistant
Dr. Kingston chose to use the Young Scientist award to help support the next generation of young scientists in southeast Asia. She is funding the graduate field research of an Indonesian student, Rakhmad Sujarno, with whom she has worked for many years in the field in Indonesia. Sujarno has been eager to do a masters degree for many years but the opportunity has not arisen in Indonesia. Between her normal Earthwatch Institute grant and the Young Scientist award, Dr. Kingston was able to offer a position to Sujarno assisting in her fieldwork in Krau Wildlife Reserve. The student is now registered at the University Kebangsaan Malaysia, Dr. Kingston's collaborating institution. Sujarno is a valuable addition to her team in the field, and has a promising future as a conservation biologist in the region.
Publications and Papers
Pending
Quotes
"Rakhmad has proved invaluable to me in managing this year's teams of Earthwatch volunteers. Through his participation in the Earthwatch teams and the various workshops held by the Malaysian Bat Conservation Research Unit, his skills and ability to convey knowledge are going from strength to strength. Thus the award is not only helping him attain his masters, but also I hope that upon his return to Indonesia his expertise in bat identification and biology, coupled with his communication and management skills, will equip him to make a substantial contribution to bat conservation in Indonesia. The Young Scientist award has made a big difference to a young man's prospects and to bat conservation."