February 22, 2008 Release

Events for the upcoming Week: Feb. 22 – Mar. 2
(Seminars, Symposiums, Conferences, Events, Field Trips, etc.)

The Warnell School will host the 2008 Southeastern Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (SEPARC) annual meeting February 21-23 at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel.  A schedule for the meeting, including list of symposium speakers and topics, workshops, poster titles and field trips is available at the SEPARC website.  

The Center for Forest Business continues its successful series of forestland investment conferences with International Forest Investment: An Executive Education Conference. The conference will be held at the Bayerischer Hof Hotel in Munich, Germany on February 22, 2008. For more information visit the conference website.

Natural Resources Recreation and Tourism Society members will participate in the Southeastern Recreation Research Conference in Savannah, Ga. from Feb. 24-26.

The UGA Herpetological Society (UGHS) and the student chapter of The Wildlife Society (TWS) welcome guest speaker Chris Harper from the HOT HERP Society on Tuesday, February 26 at 6:45pm in room 1-304.

2008 Spring Colloquium will feature Dr. Reese Halter, founder and president of Global Forest Science, on Wednesday, February 27 at 3:30pm in the 2-100 auditorium at the Warnell School complex. Halter is an award-winning conservation scientist, syndicated science writer, TV nature documentary host, professor of botany at Humboldt State University, California, and popular children's author. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Melbourne, Australia and is an expert on the topics of global warming, hurricanes, fire, weather phenomena, ecological disasters, conservation and forest biology and ecosystems. The lecture will be followed by a public reception in the Warnell School courtyard.

The Warnell Colloquium speaker, Reese Halter, would like to meet the students of the school. Next Wednesday morning, February 27th, students are invited to drop in to meet him from 9:30am-11:00am in the Dean's Conference Room located across from Barbara Trotter's desk in building 2. Free coffee and donuts will be provided while supplies last so get there early!

The NRRT Society holds its next meeting Wednesday, Feb. 27 from 5:30-6:45pm in room 1-304.

The Wildlife Society holds its next meeting Wednesday, Feb. 27 from 6:45-8:00pm in room 1-304.

The UGA chapter of Ducks Unlimited will hold its annual spring banquet Wednesday, Feb. 27 at Flinchums. Doors open at 6:30pm, and dinner begins at 7:00pm. Cost is $35 ($50/couple) and includes a one-year membership to DU, and dinner. For more information contact Andrew Cartey 706/255-0284, or Charlie Plush 404/353-8854.

The Warnell School Graduate Student Symposium will be Thursday & Friday, Feb. 28 & 29. This is a great opportunity to learn more about the research interests of Warnell School students and participate in a silent auction to raise funds for the School’s graduate Student Association. For more information email Kate Spear.

Xi Sigma Pi will hold the 2008 Lumberjack Ball Saturday, March 1 at Flinchums. Festivities begin at 3:30pm and will include food & beverages, an auction, door prizes, pie the professor booth, and the always entertaining fashion show. Tickets are available for $5 at Barbara Trotter’s desk, or $7 at the door.

Mark Your Calendar

NRRT Society members and Warnell School Ambassadors will coordinate and judge at the east regional of the Georgia Envirothon competition on Tuesday, March 4. If you are interested in participating in this event contact Allison Ginn or Emily Saunders.  

The South Campus Career and Internship Expo will take place Wednesday, March 5 from 11:00am to 4:00pm at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education. Employers in agricultural, environmental, and related industries will be on site looking to recruit Warnell and CAES students.For more information email Emily Saunders. 

The UGA Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters will host the SAF Roundtable on Wednesday, March 5 from 6:00-8:00pm at Flinchum’s in order to promote networking between natural resource students and professionals. All majors are welcome to attend this FREE BBQ dinner. Dress is business casual and feel free to bring your resumes!

Spring Break – March 10-14

Achievements from the Previous Week: Feb 15-22

“Thursday Seminar”

The February 21 seminar featuring Dr. Wayne Hubert of the USGS Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, is posted for your viewing pleasure.

"Fish on the move: Corridors and connectivity in river systems."
View streaming video here

You will need them most recent version of the Quicktime video plugin which may be downloaded free from the Quicktime website.  

“In the News”

Professor measures outdoor recreation trends across America
Columns faculty profile of Dr. Gary Green
Read More Here

Different Beats for Different Bats
UGA Research Magazine (Winter 2008 edition)
features research of Dr. Steven Castleberry
Read More Here

Pine Gene Catalog to Aid Biofuels Research
UGA Research Magazine (Winter 2008 edition)
Features research of Dr. Jeff Dean
Read More Here

Fire Season
UGA Outreach Magazine (Winter 2008 edition/pgs. 10-11)
Features Warnell School response to 2007 wildfires
Read More Here

Forest Investments Are Increasingly International
Southern Mississippi Sun-Herald
Read More Here

A research team led by UGA Dean of Ecology John Gittleman finds that most new diseases originate in wildlife.
BBC News
Read More Here

Call for new laws on stolen log
BBC News
Read More Here

“Awards/Appointments”

Kate Spear, wildlife graduate student, received an H. Branch Howe Research Grant from the Georgia Ornithological Society.  This grant will support her graduate research project, "Monitoring wild bird populations in Central Balkan National Park relative to human disturbance from increased ecotourism."  Kate will continue her field data collection during May and June 2008 in Central Balkan National Park.

Cory VanGilder, wildlife student, was awarded the outstanding student presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Southeast Deer Study Group in Tunica, Mississippi. Cory was one of 16 student presenters at the meeting making this the third year in a row that a student from the University of Georgia received the award. Cory’s presentation was titled "Effects of intensive predator removal on white-tailed deer recruitment in Northeast Alabama."

The Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at The University of Georgia provides UGA students with five degree path programs in forestry and natural resource science and management, include the forestry, fisheries and aquaculture, natural resources recreation and tourism, water and soil resources, and wildlife management and ecology majors. With more than fifty faculty and 23,000 acres of teaching lands, the Warnell School is the southeast’s oldest, and one of the most respected forestry and natural resource education providers in the United States. The school also houses one of the largest study abroad programs in the nation covering all seven continents to provide global learning opportunities for its students. For more information visit the Warnell School website at www.warnell.uga.edu.