Welsh scientist wins 'world's top' animal conservation prize

A scientist from Carmarthen has won the world's top prize for animal conservation for his work in saving nine species from extinction.

Professor Carl Jones, who now lives in the village of Llanwrda has worked for nearly 40 years in Mauritius to bring back several species from the brink of extinction including the pink pigeon and the echo parakeet.

Most notably, Jones saved the Mauritius kestrel from extinction and expanded their number to more than 300 birds in one decade.

At the time, just four kestrels remained in the wild, making it the rarest bird in the world.

In the late 1970s, Jones traveled to the Republic of Mauritius to save a species that conservationists considered a lost cause: the Mauritius kestrel. Credit: FHF London
Jones has worked closely with iconic British animal conservationist, Gerald Durrell. Credit: FHF London

The prize -which is widely recognised as the 'Nobel Prize' of animal conservation- means that Prof Jones will receive $250,000 (over £170,000) and a medal at an awards ceremony at The Natural History Museum in London.