July 2020
WILDNEWS
Dr PatríciaMedici
WhitleyGoldAward 2020
winnerDrPatríciaMedici
leadsthelargestlowland
tapirstudyintheworld
andplanstoexpandher
work to the Amazon.
Chair of the IUCN/SSC Tapir Specialist Group
MEET THE SCIENTIST
W
henPatrícia
Medici
co-founded
Brazil's
Institutefor
Ecological
Research(IPÊ)in1995,theNGO’s
focuswasspeciesconservation–
particularlyanimalsaboutwhich
peopleknewverylittle:“I choseto
studythelargestlandmammalin
SouthAmerica– thelowlandtapir.”
Theconservationistadmitsshe
onlystartedtofallinlovewiththe
speciesafterlearningmoreaboutit.
“Thesegardenersoftheforestare
superimportantastheyplaya key
roleinshapingandmaintainingthe
ecosystembydispersingseeds– 50
percentoftheirdietis nativefruits.”
Theelusiveherbivoresaretrickyto
studybut,after 25 yearsofworking
acrosstheAtlanticForest,Pantanal
andCerradoecosystems,Medici
hasdiscoveredthatthesolitary
lowlandtapirhasa largeareaofuse,
equivalentto 500 footballfields.
“Itneedsthisrangetofindfood,
waterandshelter,”she
says.“Ifyouconserve
a lowlandtapir
population,you
areconserving
hugechunks
ofhabitat,
whichbenefits
otheranimals
and plants.”
aredeforestationandhabitat
fragmentation;poachingand
hunting;pesticideusedinlarge-scale
agriculture;androadtraffic.Medici’s
conservationstrategyis toidentify,
quantifyandmitigatetheknown
threat.SomeofTheLowlandTapir
ConservationInitiative’sgreatest
successesincludereducingtapir
roadkillwithspeedcamerasand
educationalsigns,andraisingthe
flagaboutpesticidecontamination,
afterdiscoveringchemicalsintapirs.
Medici’s£60,000GoldAward
fromtheWhitleyFundfor
Naturewillbeusedtostudyand
reducethreatstotapirsinthe
Amazon,alongthesouthernarc
ofdeforestationinMatoGrosso
andParastates.“Infourselected
areas,weplantofocusonlarge-
scaleagricultureandpesticides;
forestmanagementcombinedwith
logging;mining;andpalmoil,”she
says.Thelattertwoarethreatsthat
theprojecthasnotresearchedbefore.
“Thetimingcouldnotbemore
appropriate,giventhecurrent
politicalsituationinthecountry.
Takingactionnowis particularly
importanttoavoidwildlifeand
climate emergencies.”Jo Price
A erstudyingpathways
usedbytapirsinAtlantic
Forest,webuiltthelargest
wildlife corridor in Brazil.
S
T
Medici’sprojectincludes
mappingroutesusedbytapirs
andreforestingthesecorridorsto
connectfragmentedareasofforest
andtackleclimatechange.“After
studyingpathwaysusedbytapirsin
AtlanticForest,webuiltthelargest
wildlifecorridorinBrazil,withthe
participationoflocalcommunities.”
Adoptingagroforestry
practices
sparkedpeople’s
interestandthis
evolvedintoall
kindsofrelationships
- developing
sustainable
businessesand
educatingpeople
abouttheimportance
oftheenvironment.
Themainthreatsto
lowlandtapirs in Brazil
Patricia portrait: Liana John/Whitley Awards 2020; tapir (x2): Joao Marcos Rosa/Whitley Awards 2020
Medicidevelopedher
researchworkwith
tapirs in the Pantanal.
WhitleyFund
forNature:
whitleyaward.
org; IPÊ:
ipe.org.br/en
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