Nigerian conservationist wins £40,000 award The Punch Published 14 May 2021 A Nigerian conservationist, Iroro Tanshi, has received a Whitley Award worth £40,000 to save the short-tailed roundleaf bat after discovering the country’s first and only known population. The Whitley Awards are presented annually to individuals from the Global South by UK-based charity, the Whitley Fund for Nature. According to a statement on Thursday, Tanshi is one of six conservationists to be recognised in 2021 for their commitment to conserving some of the planet’s most endangered species and spectacular natural habitats. The statement said the short-tailed roundleaf bat had not been seen in the wild for 45 years.