‘I feel utterly unworthy when I think of past greats who won this medal’
Significant contribution to natural sciences: Rohan Pethiyagoda
In what is probably the highest accolade paid to a Sri Lankan naturalist ever, this year’s Linnean Medal for Zoology was bestowed on Tilak Rohan David Pethiyagoda, who, though not a scientist in the formal sense, has as a naturalist been a guiding light with his magisterial Freshwater Fishes in Sri Lanka (1990) and been responsible for the discovery and/or description of almost a hundred new species of vertebrates from our island.
In between he worked on the bio-geography of the island and set up the Wildlife Heritage Trust to further biodiversity exploration in Sri Lanka, and is the leading taxonomist of the freshwater fish in Sri Lanka.
The medal was awarded in the Piccadilly premises of the Linnean Society of London, in the elegant Council Room with portraits of past presidents since 1788 looking down.
Former winners of this medal include a medley of the legendary and the path breaking; from Ernst Haeckel to Thomas Huxley, Richard Owen, Stephen Jay Gould and Joseph Hooker.
Mr. Pethiyagoda told the Sunday Times he ‘feels very honoured, of course’.
“It was something I never expected, and when I first received an email informing me that I had been selected, I initially thought it was a practical joke.”
The presentation ceremony at Burlington House on May 24, was very solemn and Mr. Pethiyagoda says he felt very honoured as a Sri Lankan to be standing there.
At the reception that followed, many of the Linnean Society’s fellows told him about associations they had had with Sri Lanka, whether as scientists, academics or just nature tourists.
“I always knew that our biodiversity was held in high esteem, but it was humbling to see the depth of intimate knowledge many of those scientists have about our country.”
While the selection process is not disclosed, it is based on significant contributions to natural science in fields such as taxonomy, systematics, phylogenetics, evolution and ecology.
“I learned in conversation that what they consider is lifetime achievement. When I consider some of the great people who have won the medal in the past (it has been awarded annually since 1888), I feel utterly unworthy!”
Nonetheless the society also mentioned in their citation that Rohan’s “programme of original and collaborative research (both Sri Lankan and overseas) has resulted in publications on many zoological groups in addition to fishes. His impact on biodiversity research in Sri Lanka and beyond through his output and catalytic influence cannot be overestimated.”
At the presentation Rohan reminisced about ties with the ‘Linn Soc’ in the 1990s when he came to its library to research. “At the time of the society’s founding, in the early 19th Century, there was a huge series of interactions between the society and scientists in then Ceylon.
“As a result of this the library contains some unique archival material from that period, and a huge chunk of the botanical and zoological exploration of Ceylon and its history reposed in this building, and so this is very close to my heart.”
Asked what conservation issues he would wish to throw the limelight on in this moment of glory, Rohan says that while encroachment of forests, for example, will accelerate and be more difficult to control as people try any means they can to earn a living, if he had a choice he would devote more of his energy to economic recovery than to the environment in the coming years.
“It astonishes me that even many educated Sri Lankans do not appear to appreciate the gravity of our predicament. This is the worst setback our country has suffered in perhaps a century, and it will take all the effort we can muster to emerge from this crisis even in 10 years from now. We risk losing an entire generation of our youth, our children, and I am very worried for our country. As I give you these responses from London, I can’t wait to return to Sri Lanka, to face this crisis together as a people.”
| The Society and the Medal | |
| The Linnean Society is the world’s oldest active society devoted to natural history, founded in 1788. The Linnean Medal is awarded to a botanist and a zoologist each year. This year the botanist thus feted alongside Rohan is Professor Sebsebe Demissew of Ethiopia, for lifetime work including documentation of the plant resources (both wild and cultivated) of Ethiopia and Eritrea including the traditional knowledge on the use of plants by indigenous communities.Housed in the majestic quadrangled splendour of Burlington House in Mayfair, the society’s vision is a world where nature is understood, valued and protected.
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