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New species sighted at Palo VerdePhoto by G. Murillo, 2010 PV
 | On March 17 2010, our colleagues at the Palo Verde Biological Station identified a species of bird which had never been recorded in Costa Rica before.
They identified the species as a Comb Duck (Sarkidiornis melanotos). According to the literature, their geographical
distribution spans from parts of Panama
and South America to Africa and India, so it is a pantropical species.
Palo Verde submitted the sighting of this species to the Ornithological Society of Costa Rica. Congratulations Palo Verde!
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Tropical Rain Forest
Restoration:
Practice, Economics & Politics
The Organization for Tropical Studies is offering  a short
specialty course in Indonesia, July 9-18, prior to the 2010 annual meeting of the Association of Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) in Bali.
The course is designed for
advanced undergraduates, graduate students, faculty and professionals
interested in learning about key issues and research topics concerning
the restoration of Indonesian forests. In the past 50 years, 40% of
Indonesia's forests have disappeared and the rate of forest loss is
accelerating. Half of the remaining forests are fragmented by human
development such as roads and plantations. The country has recently set
a GHG emission target of 26%.
The course will offer an
introduction to the theoretical approaches and practical applications
of rainforest restoration. The course is being developed to offer
graduate students and faculty an insight into research opportunities in
Indonesia and the opportunity to explore the challenges of restoration
in light of carbon offset proposals. We will also examine the challenges in
meeting future forest monitoring requirements associated with efforts
to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD).
Download the flyer
Contact: Ed Stashko, VP for Global Partners and Programs
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Fern Blog Video
The latest video installment on the La Selva Fern Blog is now available online. In this segment, Deedra McClearn speaks with Jenny Tenorio about her recent discovery of a fern-eating caterpillar.
Jenny and the Fern-Eating Caterpillar (2:56)
La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica
Hosted by Deedra McClearn with Jenny Tenorio |
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. | OTS Membership T-shirt Contest
The annual OTS Amigos t-shirt has been a long-standing tradition for decades. Each year, we have spotlighted a wide variety of tropical themes. This year, we're leaving it up to you -
our members. Send us your design, illustration or photo to cathleen.lemoine@duke.eduby
June 1, 2010.
In June, we will send an online poll to everyone
on our E-Canopy electronic mailing list. The design with the most votes will be
selected as the new Membership t-shirt! |
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OTS offers trips for individuals to explore the world in a unique setting and with a group of like-minded individuals. We are planning our upcoming travel schedule and want to hear from the OTS community to determine the locations and types of trips you would like to see offered.
Please take a moment to complete this short survey. CLICK HERE
Thank you!
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| | Tropical
Butterfly Ecology... and a whole lot more!  Spaces
are still available for enrollment in this May 14-28 field course being offered
in Costa Rica. Not a butterfly ecologist? Look again! This course has a
stellar lineup of faculty of potential interest to many graduate students or
postdoctoral fellows in evolutionary ecology:
Phil
DeVries(Coordinator) - a tropical field biologist with broad interests in comparative
biology, ecology, and the evolution of plants and animals, particularly
butterflies. He has worked in many tropical countries and habitats, and his
widely known books and papers cover a diversity of topics concerned with the
evolutionary biology of butterflies. Phil is also mildly fanatical about
photography, cuisine and jazz. Website: http://fs.uno.edu/pdevries/
Bruce
Walsh(Co-Coordinator) - a mathematical biologist with broad interests in using models
to explore the interface of genetics and evolution. He has a particular focus
in two areas: the evolution of genome structure, and the analysis of complex
genetic characters (quantitative genetics). He is widely known for his books
and papers in these two areas. Bruce is also one of the most fanatical
Lepidopterists living in Arizona. Website: http://nitro.biosci.arizona.edu/
Isidro
Chacon(Co-Coordinator) - a highly accomplished field naturalist who knows the insects,
plants and vertebrates of Costa Rica. Well-known within the Lepidopterist
community through his papers and books, he is also the curator of Lepidoptera at
the Museo Nacional de Costa Rica and INBIO.
Jim
Fordyce(visiting faculty) - an evolutionary ecologist with interests in how
reproductive isolating mechanisms evolve, and what are their consequences. To
this end he uses a variety of approaches to address this question, particularly
in butterfly-plant interactions. Web page: http://web.utk.edu/~jfordyce/
Simon
Lailvaux(visiting faculty) - an ecophysiologist interested in the interface between
function and behaviour and how physiological capacities affect the evolution of
reproductive strategies and associated traits. He uses integrative methods to
address behavioral and evolutionary hypotheses regarding reproductive success on
a wide variety of organisms. Website:http://www.fs.uno.edu/slailvau/index.html
Chris
Nice(visiting faculty) - an evolutionary ecologist with interests in speciation,
ecological genetics, conservation and population ecology. He uses a variety of
methods to ask questions in the areas of plant-insect interactions, speciation,
hybridization and problems in conservation biology, particularly butterflies.
Web page: http://www.bio.txstate.edu/~cnice/NiceLab.html
Other
OTS graduate field courses with open enrollment:
Tropical Plant Systematics 2010-9: June 10 - July 13,
2010
Rolling admission (a few spaces
left)
Biodiversity of True Bugs: August 8-21,
2010
Rolling admission (a few spaces
left)
Ecología Tropical y Conservación 2011-2: January 14 - February 23, 2011
Applications due June 15, 2010
FOR
MORE INFORMATION
and application forms, please click here. |
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