2016 Easter Island Ecology Expedition What’s left on Rapa Nui? The Search for Native Insects
Due to a fragile ecosystem and an extended drought (timed with the arrival of humans), Rapa Nui underwent a catastrophic ecological shift. This shift and associated human pressures resulted in all native vertebrates and most native plants going extinct. Today, a handful of endemic insect and plant species are all that remain. Wynne and colleagues have been responsible for the recent discovery and description of 8 cave restricted arthropods — lending further support that relict fauna still exist on the island. Our goal is to further define what’s left on Rapa Nui – specifically endemic insects. Information gathered will be used to help conserve and manage the island’s natural resources. We will survey the environments likely to have been minimally impacted by humans: caves, cliff faces, rocky coastal shorelines, and volcanic craters. Our objectives are to: (1) better define the distributional ranges of the recently discovered endemic species; (2) search for new species of endemic animals by sampling additional caves and resampling select caves; and, (3) sample other extreme environments where endemic insects may occur. For this forum, it's important to note that we will be working in four different environments while on Rapa Nui. There may be some sessions that do not involve an underground component. Requirements: Excellent physical condition; team-player; willingness to work long days in the field and conduct some fieldwork at night; sort insects, enter data and perform other project- related tasks in the evenings; have experience in caving and/or rock climbing; desire to learn about sampling insects; American Red Cross First Aid/ CPR certified. Four three-week field session options • Session I: 13 June – 01 July 2016 • Session II: 04 July – 22 July 2016 • Session III: 25 July – 12 Aug. 2016 • Session IV: 15 Aug. – 02 Sept. 2016 Volunteers responsible for all expenses • Airfare: ~$2,500.00 • Lodging, meals & ground transport: $4,000.00 • Chile Tourism Entry Fee (U.S. citizens): $160.00 • Global Rescue Travel Insurance (required): $229.00 Contact Jut Wynne ([email protected]) for more information. Be prepared to send current CV and contact information for three professional references. Video: New Discoveries from Easter Island, The Explorers Club Headquarters, New York, NY (MAR 2015) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pS2TCX9bUmU /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ J. Judson Wynne, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor Department of Biological Sciences Merriam-Powell Center for Environmental Research Northern Arizona University Box 5640 Flagstaff, AZ 86011 Research Scientist The SETI Institute Carl Sagan Center 189 Bernardo Ave., Suite 100 Mountain View, CA 94043-5203 http://jutwynne.com 928.863.8628 (mobile) /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\ /|\^._.^/|\
