A prominent Assam-based conservation scientist, Bibhab Kumar Talukdar, was on Friday conferred with the coveted “The Harry Messel Award for Conservation Leadership” by the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The award was presented to him in Abu Dhabi for his contributions to species conservation on the ground and through leadership, as part of the work of the SSC, the Guwahati-headquartered Aaranyak, a leading biodiversity conservation organisation founded by Talukdar in 1989, said a statement.

He has been associated with IUCN SSC since 1991 and became the Chair of the Asian Rhino Specialist Group in 2008, said a statement. Founded in 1948, the non-profit IUCN is the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources for development.

The Harry Messel Award for Conservation Leadership was instituted in 2004 in the name of Professor Harry Messel, the former Chair of the SSC Crocodile Specialist Group. The award recognises exemplary service to the IUCN SSC, a science-based network of over 10,000 volunteers from almost every country.

Talukdar has published over 70 scientific papers, including co-authors of two papers published in SCIENCE.