Dr Colin O’Donnell, of Christchurch, ONZM for services to wildlife conservation
Dr Colin O’Donnell has been a scientist with the New Zealand Wildlife Service and the Department of Conservation (DOC) since the 1980s, and is the country’s leading expert in New Zealand long-tailed and short-tailed bats. He has contributed significantly to the protection of Canterbury’s braided river systems. He leads DOC’s Threatened Species Research workstream. He was contracted by Environment Canterbury to conduct an inventory of indigenous birdlife on Canterbury’s waterways. He has participated in global bat studies and is internationally recognised for his publications. He has led DOC’s Bat Recovery Group and heads DOC’s Bat Threat Classification Advisory Team. Between 1987 and 2000, Dr O’Donnell voluntarily compiled South Island and outlying islands bird sightings for publication by the then Ornithological Society of New Zealand (now Birds New Zealand).