Challenging torrential rains countered by cooperative bats in Costa Rica
March 5, 2025
Merlin and MTBC team members spent 19 days in Costa Rica last November on a filming trip for “Bat City” with its Director and Emmy
MTBC’s Antoniya Hubancheva Award was established in honor of Antoniya Hubancheva—the recipient of our first student scholarship (thanks to a generous gift from our first director, Jeff Acopian). This support played a key role in helping “Toni” gain acceptance into the prestigious Max Planck Institute graduate program, where she excelled and successfully completed her Ph.D. in 2023. Her scientific discoveries have been filmed by the BBC and National Geographic, and we’re very proud of her.
The award was created in 2024 and we are delighted to announce that the 2025 Antoniya Hubancheva Award of $5,000 will go to Juan Pellón, from Peru. He will use the award to conduct the first year-round evaluation of the status and needs of the rare Peruvian long-snouted bat (Platalina genovensium). This species is the primary pollinator of key cacti from Peru to northern Chile, but faces significant threats, including roost disturbance, impacts of climate change, and habitat loss. Pellón’s project will provide valuable guidance for future conservation efforts and help establish a long-term monitoring program for this understudied, endangered species.
Three additional applicants each received $2,500 in support of their outstanding research proposals.
Applications for the 2026 Antoniya Hubancheva Award will reopen this September and again will be preferentially awarded to individuals from developing countries who are working on projects of exceptional value to bat conservation. We look forward to sharing progress reports.
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Merlin and MTBC team members spent 19 days in Costa Rica last November on a filming trip for “Bat City” with its Director and Emmy
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Madelline Mathis has a degree in environmental studies from Rollins College and a passion for wildlife conservation. She is an outstanding nature photographer who has worked extensively with Merlin and other MTBC staff studying and photographing bats in Mozambique, Cuba, Costa Rica, and Texas. Following college graduation, she was employed as an environmental specialist for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. She subsequently founded the Florida chapter of the International DarkSky Association and currently serves on the board of DarkSky Texas. She also serves on the board of Houston Wilderness and was appointed to the Austin Water Resource Community Planning Task Force.
Michael Lazari Karapetian has over twenty years of investment management experience. He has a degree in business management, is a certified NBA agent, and gained early experience as a money manager for the Bank of America where he established model portfolios for high-net-worth clients. In 2003 he founded Lazari Capital Management, Inc. and Lazari Asset Management, Inc. He is President and CIO of both and manages over a half a billion in assets. In his personal time he champions philanthropic causes. He serves on the board of Moravian College and has a strong affinity for wildlife, both funding and volunteering on behalf of endangered species.