Hello all, I would like to provide a head's up to ecology community about an upcoming session at the 2012 Ocean Sciences Meeting in Utah. This session focuses on the reproduction and early life history of the many taxa of large marine vertebrates, including sea turtles, fish, marine mammals, sea birds, etc.. We encourage you to share your work in this session, or have you spread the word to those who might be interested.
Unfortunately, abstracts are due tomorrow by midnight central (US) time (5AM GMT Saturday). A summary and link are provided below. The session category is: Biological oceanography, aquatic biology. The session number is 124 (see below). Cheers, Kate Kate L. Mansfield, Ph.D. Visiting Assistant Research Professor/CIMAS Florida International University and NOAA Fisheries, NMFS SEFSC 75 Virginia Beach Drive Miami, FL 33149 Phone: 305-365-4108 http://www.sgmeet.com/osm2012/default.asp 124: NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE EARLY LIFE STAGES AND REPRODUCTIVE DYNAMICS OF LARGE MARINE VERTEBRATES Organizers: Joel Llopiz, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, [email protected]; Barbara Muhling, University of Miami Rosenstiel School Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Science, [email protected]; Kate Mansfield, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, NOAA/NMFS, [email protected]; Lesley Thorne, Duke University Marine Laboratory, Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, [email protected] Large marine vertebrates, whether bony fishes, sharks, mammals, sea turtles, or birds, play critical roles in the functioning of marine ecosystems. Since the maintenance or rebuilding of large marine vertebrate populations is highly dependent upon successful reproductive events and the survival of the early life stages, the understanding of these processes is critical for effective management and conservation efforts. For many of these long-lived species, the ‘lost years’ during the early life stages (part or all of the juvenile stage, and including the larval stage for bony fishes) have been distinctly understudied. Yet, a recent increase in efforts is shedding new light on the early life stages of large marine vertebrates, as well as their reproduction. Examples of such research include the mapping of reproductive areas in relation to oceanographic conditions, understanding the processes influencing reproductive output, and investigating how the survival and behavior of ea rly life stages vary with biotic and abiotic conditions. The comparative approach of bringing together knowledge and perspectives gained from studying this taxonomically broad but important group of organisms should provide greater insight into general patterns and processes influencing the survival and conservation of the world’s large marine vertebrates.
