MICHAEL S. COYNE
President, International Sea Turtle Society
E-mail: mcoyne@seaturtle.org
The “27th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation” is now only five months away. The 2007 symposium will be held at the Kingston Plantation on the Atlantic Ocean in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, USA. This is a great facility allowing us to place all symposium events within close proximity to one another. We anticipate having a variety of local and regional tours and activities available for meeting attendees. Listed below is specific information regarding the 27th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation. Additional details will be posted on the symposium website <https://www.seaturtle.org/symposium/> and published in the next issue of the MTN.
Symposium dates: Thursday 22 February – Wednesday 28 February 2007. Main dates: 25-27 February.
Venue: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, USA (https://www.kingstonplantation.com/)
Room prices: Standard Room for up to four persons will be $109 per night. The price includes a full breakfast buffet (for all persons in the room) and a nightly “happy hour”. Room prices will be the same for three days before and after the Symposium dates if you wish to stay and vacation in the area.
Transportation: The hotel is approximately 13 miles (20 km) from the Myrtle Beach International Airport. The airport is similar in size to the Savannah airport, for those who attended the 25th Symposium. Specific instructions and approximate costs for local transportation and alternative routes will appear on the Symposium website.
Meeting agenda: There will be a special session on sea turtle projects in the Carolinas that will emphasize the work and commitment of volunteers and other participants in the monitoring of sea turtles in North & South Carolina. In addition, Brendan Godley is organizing a special plenary session entitled “Tracking of Marine Vertebrates for Conservation”. This special session is sponsored by Inter-Research (IR – https://www.int-res.com) and will form part of a high profile series of symposia https://www.ir-symposia.com. The Program Committee is finalizing the remaining sessions with appropriate specialist chairpersons in each subject area. If you have suggestions for Workshops, Special Sessions or other side-events please contact the Symposium Program Chairs: Matthew Godfrey (mgodfrey@seaturtle.org) and Lisa Campbell (lisa.m.campbell@duke.edu).
Regional meetings: The usual regional meetings (e.g., African, IOSEA, Latin American, Mediterranean, WIDECAST) are scheduled for the dates 22-24 February. MTSG meeting: 28 February.
Registration: All those who will attend the Symposium must register. Registration will be on-line through the Symposium website. It is highly preferred that registration fees are paid on-line using a credit card. If you must mail your payments, please consult the Symposium website for specific instructions.
Abstracts: All abstracts must be submitted on-line through the Symposium website and must follow the Instructions for Abstract Submission posted there. The deadline for submission is 15 October 2006. You will be asked to register and pay before submitting your abstract. All abstracts will be reviewed by a Program Committee made up of panels of subject specialists, to ensure the best possible content for the Symposium. All abstracts should be of highest quality. Due to increasing numbers of abstracts submitted, some abstracts may be rejected by the Program Committee.
New this year: Each lead author may submit only one abstract to be considered for an oral presentation and one abstract to be considered for a poster presentation. Lead authors are assumed to be the presenting author, unless otherwise indicated in the submission. In past years, multiple abstracts have been submitted by individuals on behalf of others, due to restricted internet access. This practice can continue; when submitting abstracts, you will be asked to clearly identify the lead author.
Please note that accepted abstracts will appear in the Symposium’s Proceedings available at the meeting. There will be no opportunity to submit a revised version of the abstract for the proceedings.
Travel grants: The deadline for travel grant applications is 15 October 2006. Instructions for Travel Grants can be found on the Symposium website. Hopefully, we will be able to cover a good part of travel expenses for those in need. Of course, matching funds will be essential; so, please, start looking from now for potential sponsors.
Hotel reservations: Reservations for hotel rooms will be made through The Zenith Group https://www.thezenithgrp.com/ as soon as the necessary reservation forms are ready. Deadline for hotel room reservations is 22 January 2007. After that time room reservations will be subject to availability and room rates will not be guaranteed.
Visas: If you will require a visa to enter the USA to attend the 27th Annual Sea Turtle Symposium, you should immediately begin the application process. A number of people were not able to attend last year’s symposium due to delays associated with obtaining visas. Information regarding visas will be included on the Symposium’s website.
Auction items: Please start thinking about items that you might donate for the live auction and silent auction. The live auction and silent auction represent a major avenue for raising funds to help support travel grants for the Annual Sea Turtle Symposium, so please try to contribute an auction item. Information forms for auction items will be available from the Symposium’s website – you can fill out the form prior to arriving at the symposium.
Vendors: We are hoping to locate the poster sessions, coffee breaks, and vendors within close proximity to one another, as well as the oral presentation room. Information for vendors who would like to reserve space at the 27th Annual Sea Turtle Symposium will be available on the Symposium’s website.
Coffee-break sponsors: Please consider becoming a coffee break sponsor. You will be able to sign up to be a sponsor during on-line registration on the Symposium’s website.
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