Species Legacy Auction is a Resounding Win for Wildlife Conservation
By Alex Antram
Rainforest Trust celebrated our 30th anniversary on December 8 with the largest species-naming auction in history. The excitement was palpable as the live auction began, giving everyone in the room and remote bidders an opportunity to name a new to science species and protect that species in perpetuity. In total, the auction raised $182,500 for conservation action, which Rainforest Trust plans to continue for another 30 years and beyond.
The 12 species featured were first identified in Latin American reserves created by Rainforest Trust and our local partners. Proceeds from the auction go to the protected areas in which these species were found, preserving vital habitat and saving the species from extinction. The names of four frogs, four orchids, a forest mouse, a trap-jaw ant, a salamander and a caecilian (legless amphibian) were on the auction block. It was the unusual worm-like caecilian that garnered the largest bid to protect its home in Panama.
Freeman’s of Philadelphia, the oldest auction house in the country, sponsored the event, and their Chairman and enthusiastic auctioneer Alasdair Nichol ran the show, encouraging Rainforest Trust supporters to bid. Nichol’s expertise is fine arts, and he mentioned the event was a highlight of his career—it is not often one gets to auction off the rights to name newly discovered species!
New to science species featured in the Species Legacy Auction. Photo by Rainforest Trust.
Alasdair Nichol, Chairman of Freeman’s Auction House, begins the auction. Photo by Rainforest Trust.
The event was also sponsored by Endangered Species Chocolate, a Chairman-level member of Rainforest Trust’s Conservation Circle corporate giving program, and Invaluable.com, an auction e-commerce site. The evening event took place at Clyde’s of Gallery Place in Washington, DC, made possible through our board member and restaurant owner Sally Davidson. We are indebted to both of these companies, Freeman’s and Sally Davidson for their support. Public relations were managed by the science-focused firm Crabtree + Company, and we thank them for their tireless work in promoting this historic event.
Guests enjoying our Species Legacy Auction. Photos by Rainforest Trust.
