# List of biology awards

This list of biology awards is an index to articles about notable awards for biology. It includes a general list and lists of ecology, genetics and neuroscience awards. It excludes awards for biochemistry, biomedical science, medicine, ornithology and paleontology, which are covered by separate lists.

## General awards
### International

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| International | Alexander von Humboldt Medal (IAVS) | International Association for Vegetation Science | Vegetation scientist for an outstanding body of work |
| International | Carlos J. Finlay Prize for Microbiology | UNESCO | Outstanding contributions to microbiology (including immunology, molecular biology, genetics, etc.) and its applications |
| International | Edison Award | Edison Awards | Honoring excellence in innovation |
| International | Harrison Prize | International Society of Developmental Biologists | Developmental biology |
| International | Redi Award | International Society on Toxinology | Significant contributions in toxinology, the scientific study of venoms, poisons and toxins |
| International | UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize for Research in the Life Sciences | UNESCO | Scientific research in the life sciences leading to improving the quality of human life |

### Americas

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| Canada | Flavelle Medal | Royal Society of Canada | Outstanding contribution to biological science |
| Canada | Fry Medal | Canadian Society of Zoologists | Canadian zoologist who has made an outstanding contribution to knowledge and understanding of an area in zoology |
| Chile | National Prize for Natural Sciences | National Prize of Chile | Natural sciences |
| United States | Alexander Hollaender Award in Biophysics | National Academy of Sciences | Outstanding contributions in biophysics |
| United States | Asa Gray Award | American Society of Plant Taxonomists | Living botanist for career achievements |
| United States | Benjamin Franklin Award (Bioinformatics) | Bioinformatics Organization | Individual who has, in his or her practice, promoted free and open access to the materials and methods used in the life sciences |
| United States | Biotechnology Heritage Award | Biotechnology Innovation Organization and Science History Institute | Significant contributions to the development of biotechnology through discovery, innovation, and public understanding |
| United States | Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences | Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan, Sergey Brin, Yuri Milner and Anne Wojcicki | Discoveries that extend human life |
| United States | C. Hart Merriam Award | American Society of Mammalogists | Outstanding research in mammalogy |
| United States | C. W. Woodworth Award | Entomological Society of America | Achievement in entomology in the Pacific region of the United States |
| United States | Daniel Giraud Elliot Medal | National Academy of Sciences | Meritorious work in zoology or paleontology study |
| United States | DeLano Award for Computational Biosciences | American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | Most accessible and innovative development or application of computer technology to enhance research in the life sciences at the molecular level |
| United States | E.B. Wilson Medal | American Society for Cell Biology | Significant and far-reaching contributions to cell biology over the course of a career |
| United States | Early Career Life Scientist Award | American Society for Cell Biology | Outstanding scientist early in their career |
| United States | Edwin Grant Conklin Medal | Society for Developmental Biology | Member of the society who has carried out distinguished and sustained research in developmental biology |
| United States | FASEB Excellence in Science Award | Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology | Outstanding achievement by women in biological science |
| United States | Gilbert Morgan Smith Medal | National Academy of Sciences | Excellence in published research on marine or freshwater algae |
| United States | ISCB Innovator Award | International Society for Computational Biology | Leading scientists who are within two decades post-degree, who consistently make outstanding contributions to the field, and who continue to forge new directions |
| United States | José Cuatrecasas Medal for Excellence in Tropical Botany | Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History | Botanist and scholar worldwide of international stature who has contributed significantly to advancing the field of tropical botany |
| United States | Keith R. Porter Lecture | American Society for Cell Biology | Eminent cell biologist |
| United States | Larry Sandler Memorial Award | Drosophila Research Conference : Genetics Society of America | Best dissertation of the preceding year |
| United States | Leidy Award | Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University | Excellence in publications, explorations, discoveries or research in the natural sciences |
| United States | Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize | Columbia University | Outstanding contribution in basic research in the fields of biology or biochemistry |
| United States | MBC Paper of the Year | American Society for Cell Biology : Molecular Biology of the Cell | Paper judged to be the best of the year in the field of molecular biology |
| United States | March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology | March of Dimes | Investigator whose research brings us closer to the day when all babies will be born healthy |
| United States | Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award | Biophysical Society | Woman who holds very high promise or has achieved prominence while developing the early stages of a career in biophysical research |
| United States | Mary Soper Pope Memorial Award | Cranbrook Institute of Science | Notable achievement in plant sciences |
| United States | Max Delbruck Prize | American Physical Society | Recognize and encourage outstanding achievement in biological physics research |
| United States | Merton Bernfield Memorial Award | American Society for Cell Biology | Outstanding graduate student or postdoctoral fellow who has excelled in research |
| United States | Methuselah Mouse Prize | Methuselah Foundation | World record for the oldest-ever mouse; Most successful late-onset rejuvenation strategy |
| United States | Michelson Prize and Grants in Reproductive Biology | Found Animals Foundation | Safe and effective, single-dose, nonsurgical sterilant for male and female cats and dogs |
| United States | NAS Award in Molecular Biology | National Academy of Sciences | Recent notable discovery in molecular biology by a young scientist who is a citizen of the United States |
| United States | Overton Prize | International Society for Computational Biology | Outstanding accomplishment by a scientist in the early to mid stage of his or her career |
| United States | Pearl Meister Greengard Prize | Rockefeller University | Women scientists in biology |
| United States | Romer-Simpson Medal | Society of Vertebrate Paleontology | Sustained and outstanding scholarly excellence and service to the discipline of vertebrate paleontology |
| United States | Selman A. Waksman Award in Microbiology | National Academy of Sciences | Excellence in the field of microbiology |
| United States | Sewall Wright Award | American Society of Naturalists | Fundamental contributions to the conceptual unification of the biological sciences |
| United States | W. Alden Spencer Award | College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Department of Neuroscience and The Kavli Institute for Brain Science at Columbia University | Outstanding research contributions |
| United States | WICB Junior and Senior Awards | American Society for Cell Biology, Women In Cell Biology Committee | Outstanding achievements by women in cell biology |
| United States | Wiley Prize | Wiley Foundation | Breakthrough research in pure or applied life science research that is distinguished by its excellence, originality and impact on our understanding of biological systems and processes |
| United States | William C. Rose Award | American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | Outstanding contributions to biochemical and molecular biological research and a demonstrated commitment to the training of younger scientists |

### Asia

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| India | National Bioscience Award for Career Development | Government of India | Recognizing excellence and promoting research in bio-sciences disciplines |
| India | Om Prakash Bhasin Award | Shri Om Prakash Bhasin Foundation | Research in science in India (biotechnology) |
| India | VASVIK Industrial Research Award | VASVIK | Excellence in industrial research in the areas of science and technology |
| India | Infosys Prize in Life Sciences | Infosys Science Foundation | Awards outstanding achievements of contemporary researchers and scientists across six categories, including Life Sciences |
| Iran | Iranian Biology Olympiad | International Biology Olympiad | Competition for Iranian high school students of the age of 17-18 in the field of biology |
| Israel | Sackler Prize | Tel Aviv University | Physical principles of biological systems |
| Japan | International Prize for Biology | Japan Society for the Promotion of Science | Outstanding contribution to the advancement of research in fundamental biology |
| Japan | Kihara Memorial Foundation Academic Award | Kihara Memorial Yokohama Foundation | Outstanding original research in life sciences |
| Japan | Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences | Inamori Foundation | Global achievement in Basic Sciences |
| Pakistan | Abdus Salam Award | International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Pakistan chapter | Young Pakistani scientists for their research in chemistry, mathematics, physics or biology |
| South Korea | Donghun Award | Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | Members of who made creative research achievements in biochemistry and applied fields |
| South Korea | Korean Biology Olympiad | Korean Biology Educational Society | Finalists become eligible to join the International Biology Olympiad |

### Europe

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| Austria | International Birnstiel Award | Research Institute of Molecular Pathology | Doctoral Research in Molecular Life Sciences |
| Austria | Erzherzog Rainer-Medaille | Kaiserlich-königlichen zoologisch-botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien | Scientist in commemoration of Archduke Rainer of Austria |
| Austria | Lieben Prize | Austrian Academy of Sciences | Young scientists working in the fields of molecular biology, chemistry, or physics |
| Belgium | Golden Eurydice Award | International Forum for Biophilosophy | Outstanding contribution, or contributions over a period, in the field of biophilosophy |
| Europe | EMBO Gold Medal | European Molecular Biology Organization | Young scientists for outstanding contributions to the life sciences in Europe |
| Europe | EMBO Membership | European Molecular Biology Organization | Research excellence and the outstanding achievements made by a life scientist |
| Europe | John Maynard Smith Prize | European Society for Evolutionary Biology | Outstanding young researcher |
| France | Grand Prix Charles-Leopold Mayer | French Academy of Sciences | Outstanding work in the biological sciences; especially in the areas of cell or molecular biology |
| France | HFSP Nakasone Award | Human Frontier Science Program | Frontier-moving research, including technological breakthroughs, which has advanced biological research |
| France | Leconte Prize | French Academy of Sciences | Important discoveries in mathematics, physics, and biology |
| Germany | Ernst Schering Prize | Ernst Schering Foundation | Outstanding basic research in the fields of medicine, biology or chemistry |
| Germany | International Biology Olympiad | Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education | Science olympiad for high school students |
| Germany | Otto Warburg Medal | German Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | Important work in the field of biological chemistry |
| Germany | Schleiden Medal | Academy of Sciences Leopoldina | Outstanding achievements in the field of cellular biology |
| Netherlands | Leeuwenhoek Medal | Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences | Scientist judged to have made the most significant contribution to microbiology |
| Russia | A.O. Kovalevsky Medal | St. Petersburg Society of Naturalists | Contributions in the fields of evolutionary developmental biology and comparative zoology |
| Russia | Demidov Prize | Russian Academy of Sciences | Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences for outstanding achievements in natural sciences and humanities |
| Slovakia | Miroslav Zei Award | National Institute of Biology | Outstanding scientific achievements in biology |
| Sweden | Acharius Medal | International Association for Lichenology | Life work of distinguished lichenologists |
| United Kingdom | Beverton Medal | Fisheries Society of the British Isles | Lifelong contribution to all aspects of the study of fish biology and/or fisheries science, with a focus on ground-breaking research |
| United Kingdom | Bicentenary Medal of the Linnean Society | Linnean Society of London | Work done by a biologist under the age of 40 years |
| United Kingdom | Chatt Lecture | John Innes Centre | Plant science and microbiology |
| United Kingdom | Copley Medal | Royal Society | Outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science |
| United Kingdom | Darwin Medal | Royal Society | Work of acknowledged distinction in the broad area of biology in which Charles Darwin worked, notably in evolution, population biology, organismal biology and biological diversity |
| United Kingdom | Darwin–Wallace Medal | Linnean Society of London | Major advances in evolutionary biology |
| United Kingdom | FSBI Medal | Fisheries Society of the British Isles | Scientist in the earlier stages of his or her career for exceptional advances in fish biology and/or fisheries science |
| United Kingdom | Frink Medal | Zoological Society of London | Significant and original contributions by a professional zoologist to the development of zoology |
| United Kingdom | H. H. Bloomer Award | Linnean Society of London | Amateur naturalist who has made an important contribution to biological knowledge |
| United Kingdom | Irene Manton Prize | Linnean Society of London | Best thesis in botany examined for a doctorate of philosophy in the United Kingdom |
| United Kingdom | Linnean Medal | Linnean Society of London | Awarded annually to alternately a botanist or a zoologist |
| United Kingdom | Linnean Tercentenary Medal | Linnean Society of London | Outstanding contributions to natural history |
| United Kingdom | Marjory Stephenson Prize | Microbiology Society | Outstanding contribution of current importance in microbiology |
| United Kingdom | Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Medal | Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh | Outstanding individual contribution in any field related to the work of the RBGE |
| United Kingdom | Royal Society Africa Prize | Royal Society | Researchers at the start of their career who are making innovative contributions to the biological sciences in Africa |
| United Kingdom | Stamford Raffles Award | Zoological Society of London | Distinguished contributions to zoology by amateur zoologists or professional zoologists in recognition of contributions which are outside the scope of their professional activities |
| United Kingdom | Trail-Crisp Award | Linnean Society of London | Outstanding contribution to biological microscopy that has been published in the UK |
| United Kingdom | Waddington Medal | British Society for Developmental Biology | Outstanding research performance as well as services to the developmental biology community |
| United Kingdom | William Bate Hardy Prize | Cambridge Philosophical Society | Original memoir, investigation or discovery by a member of the University of Cambridge in connection with Biological Science |

### Oceania

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| Australia | Clarke Medal | Royal Society of New South Wales | Distinguished work in the Natural Sciences (geology, botany and zoology) done in the Australian Commonwealth and its territories |
| Australia | K. Radway Allen Award | Australian Society for Fish Biology | Outstanding contribution in fish or fisheries science |
| Australia | Macfarlane Burnet Medal and Lecture | Australian Academy of Science | Outstanding scientific research in the biological sciences |
| Australia | Suzanne Cory Medal for Biomedical Sciences | Australian Academy of Science | Biomedical or biological research |
| Australia | Whitley Awards | Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales | Outstanding publications, either printed or electronic, that contain new information about the fauna of the Australasian region |

## Ecology

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| Germany | ECI Prize | International Ecology Institute, Otto Kinne Foundation | Ecologist distinguished by outstanding and sustained scientific achievements |
| United States | Eminent Ecologist Award | Ecological Society of America | Outstanding contribution to the science of ecology |
| Sweden | Kempe Award for Distinguished Ecologists | Kempe Foundations, Umeå University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences | Outstanding individuals within the science of ecology |
| United States | LExEN | National Science Foundation | Research into life-supporting environments in the polar regions |
| United Kingdom | Marsh Ecology Award | Marsh Christian Trust and British Ecological Society | Outstanding recent discovery or development which has had a significant impact on the development of the science of ecology or its application |
| Spain | Ramon Margalef Prize in Ecology | Generalitat de Catalunya | Exceptional scientific career or discovery in the field of ecology or other environmental science |
| United States | Robert H. MacArthur Award | Ecological Society of America | Established ecologist in mid-career for meritorious contributions to ecology |

## Genetics

Genetics is a branch of biology concerned with the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.
| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| United States | Archon X Prize | X Prize Foundation | First team to rapidly, accurately and economically sequence 100 whole human genomes to an unprecedented level of accuracy |
| United Kingdom | Bateson Lecture | John Innes Centre | Genetics lecture |
| United Kingdom | Biffen Lecture | John Innes Centre | Genetics lecture |
| United Kingdom | Crick Lecture | Royal Society | Biology, particularly the areas which Francis Crick worked (genetics, molecular biology and neurobiology) |
| United States | Curt Stern Award | American Society of Human Genetics | Outstanding scientific achievements in human genetics |
| United Kingdom | Darlington Lecture | John Innes Centre | Genetics lecture |
| United States | Edward Novitski Prize | Genetics Society of America | Extraordinary level of creativity and intellectual ingenuity in solving significant problems in genetics research |
| United States | Elizabeth W. Jones Award for Excellence in Education | Genetics Society of America | Noteworthy contributions to genetics education |
| United Kingdom | Genetics Society Medal | The Genetics Society | Outstanding research contributions to genetics |
| United States | Genetics Society of America Medal | Genetics Society of America | Outstanding contributions to the field of genetics |
| United States | George W. Beadle Award | Genetics Society of America | Outstanding contributions to genetics |
| United States | Gruber Prize in Genetics | Gruber Foundation | Distinguished contributions in any realm of genetics research |
| United Kingdom | Haldane Lecture | John Innes Centre | Genetics lecture |
| United Kingdom | JBS Haldane Lecture | The Genetics Society | Outstanding ability to communicate topical subjects in genetics research, widely interpreted, to an interested lay audience |
| United States | McClintock Prize | Maize Genetics Executive Committee | Plant genetics and genomics |
| United Kingdom | Mendel Medal | The Genetics Society | Outstanding contributions to research in any field of genetics |
| Australia | Ruth Stephens Gani Medal | Australian Academy of Science | Research in human genetics |
| United States | Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal | Genetics Society of America | Lifetime contributions to the field of genetics |
| United States | William Allan Award | American Society of Human Genetics | Substantial and far-reaching scientific contributions to human genetics carried out over a sustained period of scientific inquiry and productivity |

## Neuroscience

| Country | Award | Sponsor | Notes |
| United States | Eppendorf & Science Prize for Neurobiology | American Association for the Advancement of Science | Promising new neurobiologists |
| United States | Golden Brain Award | Minerva Foundation | Fundamental contributions to research in vision and the brain |
| United States | Gruber Prize in Neuroscience | Gruber Foundation | Discoveries that have advanced the understanding of the nervous system |
| United States | Karl Spencer Lashley Award | American Philosophical Society | Research on the integrative neuroscience of behavior |
| Norway | Kavli Prize | Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, Ministry of Education and Research (Norway), Kavli Foundation | Outstanding scientific work in the fields of astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience |
| Israel | Mathematical Neuroscience Prize | Israel Brain Technologies | Researchers who have significantly advanced the understanding of the neural mechanisms of perception, behavior and thought through the application of mathematical analysis and modeling |
| United States | Metlife Foundation Award for Medical Research in Alzheimer's Disease | MetLife Foundation | Scientific contributions toward a better understanding of the underlying causes, prevention, and treatments of Alzheimer's disease |
| United States | NAS Award in the Neurosciences | National Academy of Sciences | Extraordinary contributions to progress in the fields of neuroscience, including neurochemistry, neurophysiology, neuropharmacology, developmental neuroscience, neuroanatomy, and behavioral and clinical neuroscience |
| Chile | National Prize for Natural Sciences | National Prize of Chile | Natural sciences |
| International | OHBM Replication Award | Organization for Human Brain Mapping | Conducting and disseminating the results of a neuroimaging replication study of exceptional quality and impact |
| United States | Perl-UNC Prize | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Outstanding discoveries and seminal insights in neuroscience |
| United States | Potamkin Prize | Potamkin Foundation, American Academy of Neurology | Achievements in emerging areas of research in Pick's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias |
| United States | Ralph W. Gerard Prize in Neuroscience | Society for Neuroscience | Scientist who has made significant contributions to neuroscience throughout his or her career |
| United States | Swartz Prize | Society for Neuroscience | Individual whose activities have produced a significant cumulative contribution to theoretical models or computational methods in neuroscience or who has made a particularly noteworthy recent advance in theoretical or computational neuroscience |
| Denmark | The Brain Prize | Lundbeck Foundation | Scientists who have distinguished themselves by an outstanding contribution to neuroscience and who are still active in research. (Previously Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize) |
| United States | W. Alden Spencer Award | Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons | Outstanding research contributions |