FIRST PHOTOGRAPHIC GUIDE TO THE LORIS LAUNCHED
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The mysteries of the loris, an elusive primate, are now divulged after the launch of Sri Lanka’s first photographic guide devoted to the animal by Chaminda Jayasekera, resident naturalist of Jetwing Vil Uyana. The culmination of years of study, the book contains rare and interesting images along with Chaminda’s own observances and research and is published by Jetwing under the Jetwing Eternal Earth Programme.
The launch was attended by chief guest Professor Devaka Weerakoon, senior lecturer of the Zoology Department at the University of Colombo along with several other distinguished personalities in the field of conservation and schoolchildren from the Kimbissa area and members of the media. Ruan Samarasinghe, Managing Director – Jetwing Hotels and the Jetwing directorate were in attendance, being ardent supporters of the project from the very beginning.
Jetwing Vil Uyana is also home to the country’s very first Loris Conservation Site and Centre, with a three acre expanse devoted to the care and continuing existence of the loris. Here, the loris is free to roam, and has already seen a growth in population since the first sighting in 2010. This dedication to species preservation contributed to the winning of the PATA Grand Award earlier this year by Jetwing Vil Uyana, under the Environment category.
‘Chaminda has really made us all proud, and we commend his passion and effort into ensuring the loris is recognized despite the fame of bigger animals such as the leopard, the elephant, and the whale’ said Ruan Samarasinghe. ‘We hope to see more publications coming out in the future, authored by our very own extremely talented naturalists, and look forward to opening up more of Sri Lanka to its inhabitants and the world’ he continued.