“Because I am one of very few specialists in Laos, some people have started to describe me as the country’s first national herpetologist.
This is accurate to my knowledge; I’m not aware of any other Laotians who were working in the field here before 2007, when I started my master’s degree. Conservation studies were instead almost always done by visiting foreign scientists. My PhD challenged that trend, however: I focused on the diversity of Tylototriton salamanders, which led to the discovery of four species.
My day-to-day responsibilities at the National University of Laos in Vientiane include giving lectures, conducting research, leading studies, training future biologists and contributing to conservation initiatives. My own research focuses on amphibian and reptile diversity, with an emphasis on conserving threatened species in the country.
In this photograph, I’m surveying a population of Fejervarya limnocharis frogs along a stream outside Vientiane, for a field survey. I’m recording the number of adults, tadpoles, eggs and frog calls, as well as tracking other ecological factors.