Annie van de atlas, Annie van den monitoring

Interview with Annie Zuiderwijk. At the annual meeting of members of RAVON in November 2010, AnnieZuiderwijk received the lenders Award for her commitment to the science of herpetology, and for the stimulating role she has played in herpetological research in the Netherlands. This applies especially to the early stages of the project to set up a monitoring network for reptiles and amphibians. Together with Wim Bergmans, she wrote the first herpetological atlas for the Netherlands (1986), emphasising the correlation between the declining trends of several species and urban and agricultural land use. In the interview, she describes her field research on the distribution patterns of amphibians in Western Europe. The Lenders Award was established in 2006, to honour those who have distinguished themselves in their efforts to protect native amphibians, reptiles and fish. It is named after Ton and Rob Lenders, two brothers who had an important role in the study and protection of these species in the Netherlands.