Catarina Jota Baptista: 2022 Ippen Award Winner

Congratulations to Catarina Jota Baptista for winning the 2022 Rudolf Ippen Young Scientist award honouring a young scientist whose scientific output, particularly the papers published in the past 12 months, document the beginning of a promising career in wildlife veterinary science, conservation medicine or  zoo animal medicine.

All jury members agreed that Catarina is a deserving recipient of this year’s Ippen award. She fulfilled the criteria more than enough (e.g., several first-author publications in a coherent research area). She is a promising young scientist, who already is involved in teaching the next generation. All jurors agreed that her qualifications are not only strong in research, but also in her involvement in several organizations, as a member, and also as an active member of organizing committees, which makes her a tremendous fit for the award which should not only award a promising research career, but also a team player active in the wildlife community. .

This year's Jurors were: Friederike Pohlin, Martine van Zijll Langhout, Hugo Fernández Bellon and Manel Lopez Bejar,

Click here for more information on The Rudolf Ippen Young Scientist Award

Below follows an article from Catarina on her career to date and we hope it will inspire other young scientists in their work and that they will also apply for this award.

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I believe I can say it all started when I was 16 when I became a Lisbon Zoo summer camp monitor and, later on, an Educator/guide in the same department. Here I met my best friends, who are still in my life today.

I started to become particularly interested in wildlife and conservation medicine during my veterinary studies in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of ULisboa (FMV-ULisboa) when I first met the professor who latter become my master co-supervisor, Prof. Luís Madeira de Carvalho.

I joined EAZWV in 2015 precisely because of this to improve my zoo and wildlife medicine knowledge and to meet others with these interests and/or expertise. And it indeed represented a fantastic opportunity! In 2016, I joined the FAUNA direction board, a student association department focused on wildlife and conservation medicine. I was fortunate to meet Dr Endre Sós during the V FAUNA International Conference, who later became my curricular traineeship and thesis supervisor. I did my traineeship in Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden and the Hortobágy National Park (HNP). Dr Endre Sós, Dr Viktória Sós-Koroknai, Dr Martón Hoitsy, László Burzuk, Tamás Verőczey, and all zookeepers were the best teachers I could ask for. My thesis was related to the parasite monitoring of the Przewalski horses' population (Equus ferus przewalskii) at the HNP. I could not have done it without Dr Viola Kerekes and Timea Szabados, who helped me more than anyone in this work. It was highly satisfying to work with a subspecies that has already been extinct in the wild (and successfully reintroduced). This work was presented at the EAZWV Conference 2019.

In 2021, I won a phD scholarship (from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal) and started my phD (at the University of Trás os Montes and Alto Douro, Portugal). After working directly at a subspecies level, I wanted to learn and work at an ecosystem level. My project is focused on heavy metals and metalloid pollution in mammals (including hedgehogs) in the Iberian Peninsula. It contributes to knowledge in the preservation of ecosystems and One Health. I've recently joined the European Hedgehog Research Group and published a book, "Wildlife Research for a Healthier Future", with my PhD supervisors (Fernanda Seixas, José M. Gonzalo Orden and Paula A.Oliveira).

I hope to be able to contribute to a better and healthier future for all species on this planet (including humans). Moreover, I hope to inspire new veterinary students and professionals to contribute to this through an academic career that I hope to achieve. The Rudolph Ippen Young Scientist Award represents the most important recognition I could ask for at this stage. I want to thank everyone mentioned here for the opportunities and support they have given me. Without them, I'm sure I couldn't have done it!

Catarina Jota Baptista

09/06/22