Cristián Bonacic
Dr. Cristián Bonacic is the director and founder of Fauna Australis Wildlife Laboratory; a leading research group for applied conservation under the Department of Ecosystems and the Environment at the Catholic University of Chile (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile). Fauna Australis was founded in 2001 with the aim to conduct applied research on the conservation of wild endangered fauna in the southern region of South America.
At Fauna Australis, a multidisciplinary team of agronomists, biologists, forestry engineers, geographers and veterinarians are addressing the current challenges of biodiversity conservation in relation to global changes. Former and current works contribute to the following main areas:
- Ecology and vulnerability of endangered fauna
- Sustainable use of South American wild Camelids
- Distribution and impacts of invasive fauna
- Productivity and ecology of agroecosystems
- Resolution of conservation conflicts
- Ethnobiology and human dimensions of wildlife conservations
- Animal Welfare and wildlife conservation research
- Human and wildlife conflict resolution
- Conservation Medicine in South America
Dr. Bonacic earned his Ph.D. in Zoology from Wolfson College at the University of Oxford. From his work at the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit at Oxford, Bonacic was inspired to create his own research group in Chile. He also serves as the head of the Department of Ecosystems and the Environment at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, where he oversees the graduate Conservation and Wildlife Management program.
In 2007, Dr. Bonacic was awarded a prestigious Whitley Commendation for his conservation and animal welfare efforts in the Andes. Especially notable is his work to save the elusive and rare vicuna from decline. Vicunas are thought to be the wild ancestors of the alpaca, and are best known for their very expensive and extremely fine wool. It has taken decades to bring the vicuna back from near extinction, but demand for their wool remains. For the last ten years, Cristián has been working on solving the practical questions of how to safely capture and shear the wild vicunas for fiber production in the Andes. The results have become a model for training local communities and now other Andean communities are starting management programs.
Dr. Bonacic has been an integral part of the EcoHealth Alliance Global Conservation Program since the inception of the egalitarian group. Learn more about Dr. Bonacic's work at: http://www.fauna-australis.puc.cl/english/