The American biologist Daniel H. Janzen has received the Frontiers of Knowledge award from the BBVA Foundation in the category of Ecology and Conservation Biology. The scientist has spent decades studying the ecological processes of tropical forests and fighting for their conservation. In addition, he has participated in the development of such innovative techniques as parataxonomy, which uses genetic markers to describe and classify species.
The ecologist has spent much of the last 40 years in Costa Rica, where he has promoted the creation of the Guanacaste Conservation Area, the largest forest restoration project in the world and which is already an example of conservation worldwide. Much of this success is due to the local population being involved in both reserve management and research.
For Janzen, the study of biodiversity involves a deep understanding of the ecological relationships that exist between different species. For example, one of his most exhaustive studies has focused on the description of numerous species of butterfly caterpillars, the plants they consume and the parasites that feed on them, documenting at least 30,000 different species.
In addition, the winner is one of the promoters of the international project “Barcode of Life” (International Barcode of Life), which aims to identify in the coming years 5 percent of the planet’s species through genetic markers.
The jury for the award was made up of specialists in ecology from around the world, among whom was the Spanish Pedro Jordano, professor of research professor at the Doñana Biological Station (CSIC, Spain) and coordinator of the National R&D Plan. D on Biodiversity.
