The Sri Lanka Natural History Society (SLNHS) will host a public lecture on the challenges of wildlife veterinary medicine, conservation and human–wildlife coexistence on 20 October at the University of Colombo.
Titled “From the Zoo to the Wild – A Wildlife Veterinarian’s Journey”, the eighth public lecture of 2026 will be delivered by Dr Ganga Wijesinghe, who has more than 28 years of experience in wildlife veterinary medicine, One Health coordination and wildlife forensics. She is currently performing the duties of Director (Wildlife Health) at the Department of Wildlife Conservation.
The lecture will examine the contrasting challenges of treating animals in controlled zoo environments and working in the wild, where veterinary interventions must take into account animal survival, ecological conditions and the health of wildlife populations.
It will also explore the balance between animal welfare, conservation priorities and the need to promote coexistence between humans and wildlife.
In collaboration with the Nature Foundation, the SLNHS will also screen the documentary Last Roundup at the same venue at 5 pm, ahead of the lecture.
The film documents Sri Lanka’s first-ever translocation of an elephant herd using tranquillisation, detailing the operation to relocate the well-known Daduru Oya herd to Wilpattu National Park.
The lecture will commence at 6 pm at the Auditorium on the sixth floor of the ILC (Library) Building, Faculty of Science, University of Colombo.
Admission is free and open to the public, with online participation available via Zoom. Parking facilities will also be available. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82702262125?pwd=NrOabre1fnOrsvW2laQbbYLYyuGdAW.1, Meeting ID: 827 0226 2125 Passcode: 517663