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Marine Turtle Newsletter 106:21-22, © 2004

Marine Turtle Newsletter-Online

Third Announcement
25th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation (Savannah, Georgia, USA, January 16-23, 2005)

Thane Wibbels
President, International Sea Turtle Society, Department of Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA (E-mail: twibbels@uab.edu)

The “25th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation” is now only a few months away. We have developed an exciting agenda that includes a variety of stimulating topics. Since this is our “Silver Anniversary Meeting”, the initial portion of the agenda will focus on what we have learned from a quarter century of sea turtle conservation. This will included insight on optimal conservation strategies learned from long-term research programs from around the world. It will also include clear examples of how long-term programs have initiated the recovery of populations that were once in steady decline or on the brink of extinction. There will also be a session that addresses populations that are currently at risk and the general danger of extinction in sea turtle populations. Other sessions will focus on current and future technologies that enhance the study and conservation of sea turtles. There will also be a variety of sessions focusing on the biology of sea turtles including a special session on “Sensory Biology of Sea Turtles”. It is certain to be a stimulating and informative meeting, so if you have not yet registered, please do so as soon as possible.

The symposium will be held at the Hyatt Regency on the Savannah River in the historic district of Savannah, Georgia, USA. Specific meeting information including registration and hotel information can be found at <http://iconferences.seaturtle.org/> and was previously detailed in MTN 105:16-17. Deadline for pre-registration, abstract submission, and travel grant applications was extended to October 15, 2004. Be sure to start collecting items for the silent auction and live auction. The agenda is listed below. I look forward to seeing everyone at the symposium.

TENTATIVE AGENDA (Subject to Change)

Monday, January 17, 2005

RETOMALA, Latin American Reunion

WIDECAST Meeting

Tuesday January 18, 2005

RETOMALA, Latin American Reunion

WIDECAST Meeting

Mediterranean Specialists Meeting

IOSEA Meeting

African Regional Meeting

Tuesday Morning: Vendor Set-up

Tuesday Afternoon: Freshwater Turtle Workshop (tentative speakers include Whit Gibbons. Peter Pritchard, Justin Congdon, and Ken Dodd)

Tuesday Evening: Opening Social (will include free beer)

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Poster sessions will start Wednesday morning and will be displayed in the Harborside Center through noon on Friday. Two “Question and Answer” sessions will be held daily for the poster sessions at times that do not conflict with oral presentations. Additionally, all coffee breaks will be held in the Harborside Center so that posters can be viewed during the breaks. Two poster sessions are currently planned, the first starting Wednesday morning and running until 11:00 A.M. on Thursday and the second starting at noon on Thursday and running until 3:00 P.M. Friday.

Workshops: We anticipate several workshops being held during the 12:00-2:00 P.M break each day. We will be scheduling this extended lunch break on Wednesday through Friday to allow for workshops and increased time for viewing of the posters.

Silent Auction: Silent auction items will be available for your viewing and bidding from Wednesday morning until 3:00 P.M. on Thursday. Bidding will be closed at 3:00 P.M. on Thursday.

Wednesday Oral Presentations

1) Insights from Long-Term Research Programs (This session will include a variety of well-known researchers from projects around the world. It will highlight conservation strategies learned from long-term programs).

2) Conservation is Working. Success Stories from a Quarter Century of Sea Turtle Conservation (This session will highlight the long-term conservation efforts that initiated the recovery of populations that were once in steady decline or even on the brink of extinction by long-term).

3) Populations at Risk (This session will focus on problem populations and the danger of extinction in sea turtle populations).

Wednesday Evening: Video Presentations

Wednesday Evening: ISTS Board of Directors Meeting #1

Thursday, January 20, 2005

Poster Session will continue all day Thursday with two question and answer sessions.

Oral Presentation Sessions (The oral presentations on Thursday and Friday will be run in two concurrent sessions.)

Thursday Oral Presentation Sessions will include:

1) Design, Methods, and Analysis of Tagging Studies: State of the Art Methods and Future Directions

2) Present and Future Technologies in Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation

3) Sensory Biology of Sea Turtles

4) From License Tags to Flipper Tags: Impact and Overview of the Florida Sea Turtle License Tag Fund

5) Population Assessment and Analysis of Threats

6) Pathology, Disease, and Health Assessment

7) Rehabilitation

Thursday Evening: Live Auction

Friday, January 21, 2005

Friday Poster Sessions will continue until noon.

Friday Oral Presentation Sessions (until 3:00 P.M.)

1) Fisheries and Bycatch Reduction

2) Ecotourism, Public Education, and Policy

3) Sea Turtle Anatomy and Physiology

4) Sea Turtle Behavior and Reproduction

5) Sea Turtle Ecology

6) Sea Turtle Genetics

Friday Noon: ISTS Board of Directors Meeting #2

Friday 3:30-500 Plenary Session

Friday Evening: Banquet, Awards, Dance

Saturday, January 22, 2005

Saturday Morning: IUCN MTSG Meeting

Saturday Morning: Vendor take-down