Team
Members of the Black-footed Cat Working Group![alexander-sliwa-1200 Alexander Sliwa](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/alexander-sliwa-1200.jpg)
Dr. Alexander Sliwa
Project Leader
- Curator at Cologne Zoo, Germany
- Conducted the first ecological and behavioural study on black-footed cat between 1992 – 1998 on Benfontein, Kimberley, Northern Cape Province, South Africa and has led annual field operations of the Working Group since 2005
- Conducted field research on sand cats (Felis margarita) as co-leader of the Sand Cat Sahara Team (Facebook) in the Moroccan Sahara
- Invited member of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group
- Chair of the Felid TAG (Taxon Advisory Group) for the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) with 300 scientifically led zoos as members
- Former International Studbook Keeper for Black-footed Cat and Coordinator for the Black-footed Cat European Breeding Programme (EEP) while at the Wuppertal Zoo, Germany
- Also worked in the field on Aardwolf and Gordon’s Wildcat
![beryl-wilson-800 Beryl Wilson](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/beryl-wilson-800.jpg)
Beryl Wilson
Project Manager
- Research Associate at McGregor Museum, Kimberley
- Completed her MTech degree in 2015 at the Tswane University of Technology on current and historical distribution records of black-footed cats
- Has been active in black-footed cat research since 1992
- Wildlife biologist and forensic criminologist by training
- Patron of the Cat Conservation Trust
![Nadine-Lamberski-800 Nadine Lamberski, Black-footed Cat Working Group](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Nadine-Lamberski-800.jpg)
Dr. Nadine Lamberski
Project Veterinarian
- Chief Conservation and Wildlife Health Officer, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Escondido, California, USA
- Has been working on health and infectious disease monitoring in Black-footed Cats and sympatric small carnivores between 2004
- Veterinary Advisor to the Black-footed Cat Species Survival Plan (North American breeding programme)
- Active in national and international veterinary organizations
- Several in-situ and ex-situ conservation projects involving endangered species such as the thick-billed parrot, desert tortoise, and African elephants
![Jason-Herrick-800 Dr. Jason Herrick](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Jason-Herrick-800.jpg)
Dr. Jason Herrick
Project Reproductive Biologist
- Director of Reproductive Sciences, Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
- Has conducted research on the basic reproductive biology of Black-footed Cats in captivity
- Actively involved in research to introduce founder genes into captive populations of Black-footed Cats using cryopreserved semen from wild cats for in vitro fertilization procedures
- Also involved with studies of reproduction in Sand Cats and other small felids
- Reproductive Biology Advisor for the Black-footed Cat Species Survival Plan
![Arne-Lawrenz-800 Dr. Arne Lawrenz](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Arne-Lawrenz-800.jpg)
Dr. Arne Lawrenz
Project Veterninarian
- Veterinarian and Director of Wuppertal Zoo, Germany
- Veterinary Advisor to the Black-footed Cat EEP (European Endangered Species Programme)
- Has worked on wild black-footed cats in 1997-1998 and extensively on captive Black-footed Cats
- Supervisor on dissertation on research into AA-Amyloidosis in wild and captive Black-footed Cats
- Joined the Black-footed Cat Working Group in 2009
![Martina-Kuesters-800 Martina Küsters](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Martina-Kuesters-800.jpg)
Martina Küsters
Project Coordinator: Black-footed Cat Research Project Namibia
- Field Technician for the BFCWG 2013-2018
- BTech in Nature Conservation, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South Africa
- Fifteen years of field work experience in telemetry tracking
- Collecting distribution records in Namibia since 2012; the species’ northern range
- Joined the BFCWG as member in 2014
![Michelle-Schroeder-800 Michelle Schroeder](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Michelle-Schroeder-800.jpg)
Michelle Schroeder
Field Researcher
- Field Technician with the BFCWG since 2019
- Studied small carnivores in the western US
- Studied cheetah survival in South Africa for master’s thesis in Conservation Biology at the University of Cape Town
- Using specially trained dogs for scat detection and subsequent molecular analyses to assess BFC populations, now the focus of her PhD at the University of Cape Town.
![Michelle-Swanepoel-800 Michelle Swanepoel](https://www.blackfootedcat.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Michelle-Swanepoel-800.jpg)
Michelle Swanepoel
Field Technician
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Field technician since April 2023
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Completed Advance Diploma in Nature Conservation in 2023 at Tshwane University of Technology.