Honorary Fellowship for zoologist and amphibian conservationist

23 Jul 2014

Andrew honoured for saving endangered species – and teaching us all about them

Andrew Gray has been awarded an Honorary Fellowship by Myerscough College in recognition of his outstanding achievements in the field of Herpetology and along with his valuable support of Animal Studies at the College.

The award of Honorary Fellow is the highest accolade the Lancashire-based college can bestow and is given to individuals distinguished by their outstanding contribution in their fields.

Andrew is a zoologist and amphibian conservationist based at the University, where he teaches on a variety of courses. Here he has been instrumental in developing the teaching offer and establishing new field courses in the tropics.

In 2010 he was awarded an Honorary Scientific Associate by the University in recognition of his contribution to the Faculty of Life Sciences.

Andrew also curates the live animal collection at Manchester Museum and has established one of the most important collections of amphibians in the world.

Through the captive breeding programmes he has initiated, the collection of rare frogs contributes directly to conserving some of the world’s most endangered species. He is also on the steering committee of the Amphibian Ark, an international amphibian conservation organization. Using the live collection, Andrew has established, developed, and continues to teach on environmental-based primary and secondary teaching programmes for the Museum. His work also now focuses on supporting those with health problems and children with special needs, and this is something very close to his heart.

Andrew has an international reputation for specializing in the ecology and conservation of tropical frogs. His specialist knowledge in tropical herpetology has been strengthened through his extremely wide range of experience working in the field, especially in Amazonian South America, extensively in Central America, and also in tropical Queensland, Australia. To date, he has conducted over 20 research expeditions to some of the remotest areas in the world. He also works with the media, directly presenting his subject on television and acting as a main scientific advisor for BBC wildlife documentaries, more recently working directly with David Attenborough.