We are excited to announce a symposium in behavioral toxicology to be held at the annual Animal Behavior Society Conference on July 30 to August 3, 2016 at the University of Missouri-Columbia (Columbia MO). Behavioral toxicology (also known as behavioral teratology) is the study of how anthropogenic pollutants alter behavior, and is an emerging field of global importance to both conservation and public health. This symposium will use the framework of Tinbergen's four questions (causation and mechanisms, development and ontogeny, function and fitness, evolutionary history and phylogenetic patterns) to address issues in behavioral toxicology to understand how pollutants affect behavior. Although great strides have been made in the field of toxicology to understand how single pollutants affect individual phenotypes, a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach that includes animal behavior is essential to address how anthropogenic compounds are risk factors for species and population survival in an increasingly polluted world.
The goals of the symposium are to: 1) address the issue that behavioral toxicology is relevant and important when assessing the conservation and preservation of populations, 2) provide a framework for the study of the evolution of behaviors, and 3) identify areas of behavioral toxicology that require further attention to facilitate the future of behavioral toxicology as a discipline within both the behavior and toxicology fields. Confirmed speakers include: Dr. David Buchwalter Dr. Francis Champagne Dr. Tyrone Hayes Dr. Jacob Kerby Dr. Claire Ramos Dr. John Swaddle The symposium will conclude with a question and answer period with all of the symposium speakers and brain-storming with attendees. Attending the symposium is free of charge with attendance at the conference. The annual meeting is open to undergraduate students, graduate students, postdocs, and faculty members who are interested in animal behavior research. Abstracts to present at this conference are due on March 31. Registration for attendance to this conference is due May 1 (late registration possible after May 1). For more information, abstract submission and registration, see the conference website: http://www.animalbehaviorsociety.org/2016/index.php Questions? Contact one of the symposium organizers for more information: Dr. John Swaddle ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>) or Elizabeth Peterson ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>).
