The Developed Country Session of Envirovet Summer Institute 2007 provided four weeks of intensive lecture, laboratory and field experiences related to understanding wildlife health in the context of overall ecosystem health. The University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Wildlife Health Center and The University of Illinois Department of Veterinary Biosciences will plan and administer this part of Envirovet Summer Institute 2007.

Topics of emphasis in the developing country session will include: terrestrial and aquatic ecology, population biology, epidemiology, infectious and toxicologic diseases of terrestrial and aquatic wildlife, wildlife immobilization, mapping, environmental laws including those related to wildlife conservation and environmental pollution, conservation strategies (e.g., ecotourism, Endangered Species Act litigation, habitat restoration), translocation medicine, conservation genetics, theriogenology, communication skills, and grantsmanship. Students will be introduced to such field and laboratory techniques as wildlife capture and immobilization, necropsies and sample collection, telemetry, and using global positioning systems (GPS) and geographical information systems (GIS). Each lecture, laboratory or field exercise will be led by one or more highly-regarded experts, skilled in teaching, who are involved in their subject areas on a daily basis as part of their regular jobs. In this way, students will gain firsthand knowledge of the myriad ways in which they can play a significant role as veterinarians on ecosystem health teams.

Veterinarians and other scientists, primarily from North America, will contribute expertise in ecology, wildlife biology, conservation and animal health. A range of political, economic and sociologic factors that influence ecosystem stewardship will be addressed by the instructors. Two weeks of this session will be held at White Oak Conservation Center, near Jacksonville, Florida, which is supported by the Howard Gilman Foundation. White Oak Conservation Center is a premier educational center and major facility for breeding and research on endangered terrestrial vertebrate megafauna.

In addition to classroom and laboratory sessions at White Oak, Envirovet participants will study and work at St. Catherine's Wildlife Survival Center, sponsored by the Wildlife Conservation Society. At this facility on a barrier island, St. Catherine's Island (Midway, Georgia), students and faculty will apply a range of field techniques to the monitoring and care of a range of unique species.

The aquatic-focused portion of Session One will be hosted at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, located on the Indian River Lagoon, the most biologically diverse estuary in North America. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution is comprised of state of the art oceanographic, aquacultural, biomedical, and environmental research facilities as well as a full-service conference facility with on-site housing for visiting scholars and educational groups.

Below is the itinerary from the 2007 session. Please note that some units and instructors may change, and that the 2008 terrestrial and developing country sessions will each be extended by an extra day or two. Many of our instructors return year after year to teach at Envirovet, so the 2007 sessions should reflect those of 2008. We will post an updated itinerary as schedules are finalized.

Tuesday June 17   ARRIVAL DAY

Students arrive throughout day.

5:00 – 6:30 pm: Ecosystem Health as a Condition, a Principle, and an Organizing Framework
Presenter: Val Beasley, Executive Director, Envirovet Program in Wildlife and Ecosystem Health, Professor of Veterinary, Wildlife and Ecotoxicology, University of Illinois.
                Beasley will introduce concepts of ecosystem health and conservation medicine, and will challenge participants to consider how vibrant natural ecosystems function and how human systems have caused ecosystems to become dysfunctional.  Participants will be challenged to start thinking about where we are in human history, and the roles and responsibilities of the veterinary profession, government, academia, the corporate sector, grassroots organizers, and other groups in implementing innovative new strategies to accelerate our progress through to an era of ecological recovery.

6:30 pm:  Introduction to Envirovet Summer Institute Session I
Presenter:  Kirsten Gilardi, Co-Director, Envirovet – White Oak Unit, UC Davis Wildlife Health Center
                Gilardi will walk students through the schedule for our two weeks at White Oak and on St Catherines Island, what to expect and prepare for, and orient students to White Oak Conservation Center.

7:00 pm:  Welcome Reception, Dinner

Wednesday June 18   DRIVERS OF ECOSYSTEM DECAY

7:15 am:  Breakfast

Presenter:  Tom Lovejoy, H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment
                Climate change is one of the defining environmental issues of our generation. Lovejoy – who was the first to use the term "biodiversity" – will set the tone for Session I with an introductory presentation on the importance and value of biodiversity, and on the current and future impacts of global climate change on fundamental biological processes and ecosystems. 

10:30 am - 12:30 pm: Poverty, Civil Upheaval and War
Presenter:  Mishkat Al-Moumin, Futrell Visiting Scholar, Environmental Law Institute
            Dr. Al-Moumin, former Iraqi Minister of the Environment,  will describe how poverty, violence, civil upheaval and war are causal of, and caused by, ecosystem degradation. Poverty, corruption, religious and tribal conflict, and limited access to resources can lead to cruel governance, spark civil unrest, and cause war.  Such civil violence then exacerbates human pressures on the environment. 

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 – 2:45 pm: Case Study:  Ecocide in Iraq
Presenter:  Mishkat Al-Moumin
                Dr. Al-Moumin will bring together the issues and challenges facing biodiversity in a war-torn country whose citizens face threats from war, disease, and habitat degradation with a case study on the degradation of wetlands in Iraq resulting from the war. 

3:00 - 4:15 pm: Disease Emergence
Presenter:  Kirsten Gilardi, UC Davis Wildlife Health Center
                Gilardi will prompt students to think about several of the most important diseases of humans, how ecosystem degradation and sociocultural and economic factors lead to disease emergence, and will use several examples from wildlife to illustrate these connections.

4:30 - 5:45 pm:Case Study: Investigating Links Between Wildlife Disease and Habitat Use:Are Shade-Grown Coffee Plantations Disease Sinks for Neotropical Birds?
Presenter:  Sonia Hernandez-Divers, University of Georgia
                Hernandez-Divers recently completed her PhD thesis research on the links between avian pathogens in wild passerines and land-use (specifically shade-grown coffee) in Costa Rica.  She will present her findings, and challenge students to think about the ways in which human land use impacts pathogen flow and expression.

5:45 - 6:30 pm: Grassroots Soccer
Students will get outdoors and play Grassroots Soccer, a program which aims to raise awareness about health and well-being issues among youth in developing countries.

7:30 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  Free

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:30 - 10:00 am:  Habitat Degradation and Rehabilitation

Presenter:  Deborah Brosnan, Sustainable Ecosystems Institute
             Brosnan will discuss the ways in which habitats are degraded, either through extraction or utilization, fragmentation, or catastrophic climatic events, the effects of which are often exacerbated by human impacts.  What affects the resilience of the land or sea to respond to change?  What are "ecological services," and how does an ecosystem-based management approach help heal habitats? Brosnan will use her work in the Florida Everglades and in recovering tsunami-ravaged coral reefs.

10:15 am - 12:30 pm:  Ecological Economics
Presenter:  TBD, University of Vermont
                How do we place economic value on healthy ecosystems?  What does it cost society to implement ecosystem health programs, and what does it cost society if we don’t?  What are the trade-offs, and how do we work towards solutions that balance ecosystem health and conservation with the economic well-being of individuals, communities, and the business sector?

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 4:30 pm:  Diseases of North American Wildlife
Presenter: Kevin Keel, Director, Southeast Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study
Fischer will present an overview of important diseases of North American terrestrial wildlife, with an emphasis on diseases that occur as a result of human perturbation of natural ecosystems.  Also, he will introduce the purpose, principles and practice of wildlife disease surveillance.

4:45 - 5:30 pm:  Wildlife Diagnostic Pathology
Presenter:  Keel
                Keel will talk about the role of the wildlife disease diagnostician in monitoring ecosystem health, and will orient students to afternoon laboratory session

6:00 pm:  Dinner

Evening: Case Study:  Gilman International Conservation Projects Worldwide
Presenter:  John Lukas, Gilman International Conservation, White Oak Conservation Center
                Lukas will introduce flagship species conservation as a tool to protect remarkable sites of biodiversity as applied by Gilman International Conservation (GIC). He will highlight the ways that his work benefits human groups and, in some instances, addresses warfare.

Friday June 20 Elements of Ecosystem Health Recovery Strategies (cont).

6:30:  Breakfast

7:30 am – 12:30 pm: Tour of White Oak Conservation Center
Guides: White Oak Conservation Center staff
 Join White Oak Conservation Center staff for a guided open-bus tour of the White Oak Conservation Center's threatened and endangered species collection.  Bring your cameras!

12:30 pm:  Lunch

2:00 – 5:00 pm:  Laboratory - Wildlife Necropsy Techniques
Lead: Keel
As part of routine white-tailed deer herd health surveillance at White Oak Plantation, students will break into groups of 4-5 each and examine white-tailed deer at necropsy, collecting and recording extensive pertinent data

6:30 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  Pack for trip to St. Catherines Island

Saturday June 21  ST. CATHERINES ISLAND

6:00 am:  Leave White Oak for St. Catherines Island

7:45 am: Depart St. Catherines Island dock for 30-min boat ride to island.

8:30-9:45 am:  Field Exercise:  Avian disease surveillance
Instructors:  Jen Hilburn, Terry Norton, St. Catherines Island Foundation
                Students will get hands-on experience in setting up avian mist nets, removing captured birds from nets, and processing captured birds (banding, bleeding), and will learn about how these techniques are used to survey free-ranging bird populations for disease.

10:00 - 10:30 am:  Field Demonstration:  Red-cockaded Woodpecker Conservation
                Introduction to the long-leaf pine ecosystem, the biology and ecology of red-cockaded woodpeckers, and the threats to their health and sustainability in the southeastern United States; as well as a demonstration of nest box insertion while learning about this technique for population restoration

10:45-11:45 am: Field Demonstration:  Shorebird Conservation and Capture
                Students will help set up a cannon net and a rocket net, and learn about how these nets are used to capture shorebirds, as well as how St. Catherines Island participates in various shorebird conservation programs, e.g. American Oystercatcher health assessments

12:00-1:00 pm:  Lunch

1:00-2:00 pm:  Introduction to Map Reading
Instructor:  Tim Keith Lukas, University of the South
                Students will learn how to read maps and chart paths, and to use a compass and a hand-held GPS unit.

2:00 - 4:30 pm:  Field Exercise: Orienteering
Instructors: Norton, Gilardi, Beasley, Lukas, Segars
                Students will test their new knowledge of maps and navigational aids by forming teams and going on an ecological "treasure hunt" through the woods.

4:30 - 6:00 pm:  Set up camp

6:00 pm:  Dinner

7:30 - 8:30 pm:  Cultural History of St. Catherines Island
Instrucor:  Royce Hayes (St. Catherines Island)
                Superintendent Hayes will take us to an archaeological site on the island and tell us about the rich history of the settlement of St. Catherines Island hundreds of years ago.

8:30 - 10:30 pm:  OPTIONAL: Nightlife on St. Catherines Island
Instructors: Norton, Segars
                Students will learn to identify amphibian calls, locate amphibians and alligators at night, and then we'll check out bioluminescence at the beach.

Sunday June 22   ST. CATHERINES ISLAND

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 - 9:30 am:  Field Demonstration:  Reptile and Amphibian Capture Techniques
                Students will observe various traps and techniques for sampling reptile and amphibian populations, and will help biologists check traps set the night before for reptile and amphibian captures.

10:00 am -12:30 pm: Field Exercise: Gopher Tortoise Health Assessment and Conservation
Instructors:  Norton, Segars,
                Students will conduct annual health assessments on the St. Catherines Island gopher tortoise population, which was established with a translocation effort from the mainland more than 10 years ago.  Students will learn about diseases of free-ranging tortoises, gopher tortoise ecology and breeding biology, and free-ranging gopher tortoise management in the southeast.

12:30 pm: Lunch

1:30-2:30 pm:  St. Catherines Island's Captive Wildlife Program
Instructors:  Debbie Belgio and Von Kment (St. Catherines Island Foundation), and Norton
                Students will learn about hornbill and hartebeest biology, captive breeding and conservation

2:45-4:15 pm:  Field Exercise: Wildlife Telemetry
Instructors: Belgio, Lukas, Norton
                Students will use radiotelemetry receivers and antennae to locate troops of lemurs that are free-ranging on St. Catherine's Island.

4:30 - 6:30 pm:  Free time on island

6:30 pm:  Dinner; evening free

Monday June 23  ST. CATHERINES ISLAND  

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 - 10:00 am: Field Demonstration:  St. Catherines Island Sea Turtle Nest Protection Program
Instructors:  Gayle Bishop, Norton, Segars
                Students will learn about the loggerhead sea turtle nest protection program at St. Catherines and will (hopefully!) have a chance to help find and relocate a sea turtle nest to higher ground.

10:00:  Pack up

11:00  am: Depart St. Catherines Island

Afternoon:  Tour of the Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island, and return to White Oak

6:30 pm:  Buffet at Lake Lodge

Evening:  Open

8:00 am:  Breakfast

9:00 - 10:30 am: Wildlife Epidemiology and Risk Assessment
Presenter:  Jonna Mazet, UC Davis Wildlife Health Center
                Mazet will introduce principles of wildlife epidemiology and risk assessment as they pertain to real-world problems and projects in wildlife conservation and ecosystem health.

10:45 am - 12:30 pm: Population and Disease Modeling
 Presenter:  Phil Miller, Conservation Breeding Specialist Group
                Miller develops, tests, and applies computer-based models for risk assessment and decision making for wildlife conservation. These models, which focus on small population biology, conservation biology, human demography, social learning, and threats to sustainability including infectious diseases, have been developed to produce realistic management recommendations to prevent extinction of endangered species. 

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 4:30 pm: Epidemiology / Risk Assessment and Management Exercise
Leads:  Mazet and Miller
                Students will engage in exercises to develop skills needed for outbreak investigation, epidemiologic modeling, risk assessment and risk reduction

4:45 - 6:00 pm: Wildlife Translocation: Applying Principles of Risk Management
Presenter:  Scott Citino, White Oak Conservation Center
                Citino will discuss the implications of wildlife translocation and reintroduction programs for the health and sustainability of free-ranging populations, and stress the importance of considering these potential impacts when planning and implementing a translocation program.

7:00 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  TBD

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 am – 12:30 pm:  Immobilization of Wildlife - Lecture
Presenters:  Scott Citino, Lin Klein (U. Penn), and Jeff Zuba (San Diego Zoo)
Citino, Klein and Zuba will provide a comprehensive overview on comparative anesthesiology and pharmacology, immobilization methods and equipment, physical vs. chemical restraint, and safety practices for use with captive and free-ranging wildlife.

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 – 6:00 pm: Immobilization of Wildlife - Lab
Leads: Citino, Klein,  and Zuba
                A hands-on laboratory introducing students to anesthetic monitoring equipment for the field, dart projectors and darting.  Video examples of physical and chemical immobilization will be presented.

7:00:  Dinner

Evening: Open

Thursday June 26   WILDLIFE IMMOBILIZATION (CONT.)

6:15 am – 12:30 pm:  Immobilization of Wildlife – Field Demonstrations
Leads:  Citino, Klein, Zuba, WOCC animal care staff
Field demonstrations of, and hands-on experience with, physical restraint and immobilization of large ruminants (bongo), zebra, and other sensitive and/or difficult species (e.g. gerenuk).

Afternoon:  FREE

6:00 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  Open

Friday June 27  MANAGING ENDANGERED POPULATIONS

8:00 am:  Breakfast

9:00 am – 12:00 pm:  Ex-situ Conservation:  Endangered Species Reproduction
Presenters:  Linda Penfold (White Oak Conservation Center) and Bill Swanson (Cincinnati Zoo's Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife)
                Penfold and Swanson will present principles, techniques and strategies used to enhance the reproductive health of threatened and endangered species in captivity, as well as ways in which this research is coupled with conservation of these species in the wild.

12:30 - 1:30 pm:  Lunch

1:45  - 5:00 pm:  Laboratories
Leads:  Linda Penfold, Bill Swanson, and Cyd Teare (White Oak Conservation Center)
                Students will divide into two groups and each group will rotate through concurrent laboratories on:
                1. Assisted reproduction techniques
                2. Biological sample handling

6:30 pm:  Dinner

Evening: Case Studies: Bongo Translocation to Kenya; Kenyan Gerenuk Semen Importation to the US
Presenters:  Linda Penfold and Fran Lyon (White Oak Conservation Center)
                Penfold and Lyon will illustrate real-life problem solving in the areas of assisted reproduction, animal translocation, and biological sample handling.

9:00 am - 12:30 pm: Media Training
Presenter:  Rob Hilsenroth, American Association of Zoo Veterinarians
                Hilsenroth will advise students on how and when to work with the print and broadcast media to convey conservation messages and communicate about environmental crises.  Students will have a chance to practice interview techniques. Students will practice media skills in group activities and on camera.

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 2:45 pm:  Grant Writing
Presenter:  Robert Perry, Director of the Univ. of No. Carolina's Albemarle Ecological Field Site
                Perry was the Environment Program Director at the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation for many years, where he reviewed and awarded hundreds of grant proposals.  He will share his first-hand experiences in what constitutes an excellent grant proposal.

3:00 - 4:00 pm: Finding and Forging a Path
Presenter:  Ted Mashima, President and Executive Director, Asian and Pacific Islander Americal Scholarship Fund
                Successful careers for wildlife and ecosystem health practitioners depend on non-clinical competencies in communication (interpersonal, oral, written), networking, management, leadership, adaptability, negotiation, and facilitating mentor relationships.  Mashima, a ACZM-board certified veterinarian with a breadth of experience in mentoring students, will offer insight and guidance on how to gain these skills throughout your career.

4:15 - 5:00 pm:  Case Study: Paths and Programs at the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center
Presenter: Kirsten Gilardi
                 The UC Davis Wildlife Health Center, a research, service and teaching unit within the School of Veterinary Medicine, has developed and implents several wildlife and ecosystem health programs that depend for their success on many of the non-clinical competencies discussed today.

7:00 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  TBD

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 am – 12:30 pm:  Student presentations

12:30 – 1:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 – 4:00 pm:  Student presentations

4:15 - 6:00 pm: Practicing Ecosystem Health
Presenter: Gwen Griffith, Cumberland River Compact
                Griffith's career as a veterinarian has spanned the gamut between work as an equine practitioner to her present position as the director of a watershed protection program, funded by the EPA and run by a regional nonprofit, the Cumberland River Compact.  Along the way, she served as a science fellow in Washington DC, an equine clinician in a teaching hospital, started a non-profit, won awards for green building projects, and is a presenter for Al Gore's Climate Project. Griffith's career exemplifies the many paths one can forge as a veterinarian with a commitment to wildlife and ecosystem health 

7:00 pm:  Dinner

Monday June 30  PRACTICING ECOSYSTEM HEALTH

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:30 - 10:30 am: The Role of Government and Policy in Wildlife and Ecosystem Health
Presenter:  Dean Goeldner, Director, Chronic Wasting Disease Certification Program, USDA APHIS
                Based on many years working as a veterinarian in both the legislative and executive branches of the United States government, and in the Governmental Affairs Office of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Dr. Goeldner will talk about how lawmaking works, and how and when veterinarians play a critical role.  He will illustrate his points by describing first-hand his responsibilities within the USDA to establish a federal program for chronic wasting disease control. 

10:45 am - 12:15 pm: The Role of Non-Profits and the Private Sector in Wildlife and Ecosystem Health
Presenter:  Kirsten Gilardi
                Gilardi will provide an overview of the role that non-governmental organizations play in wildlife and ecosystem health, how they are structured and function, and will also describe how private philanthropy and investment shapes and drives these efforts.

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 2:45 pm:  The Role of Veterinarians in International Animal and Ecosystem Health Programs
Presenter:  Dan Sheesley, Deputy Administrator, USDA APHIS International Services
                Veterinarians play critical roles in treating and preventing disease in domestic and wild animals worldwide.  Most projects and programs are collaborative, involving close work with in-country nationals, entail immersion in foreign cultures, and present unique challenges not faced by veterinarians working in their home countries. 

5:00 - 6:15 pm: The Role of Veterinarians in Addressing Climate Change
Presenter:  Gwen Griffith, Cumberland River Compact
                Griffith, a veterinarian and spokesperson for Al Gore's Climate Project, will refresh us on the basic mechanisms underlying global warming, provide current information on the rate of climate change and the signatures changes we're seeing in the physical world, and then provide us with real-world health impacts of global warming.  She'll also talk about how veterinarians can incorporate green design and operations into their everyday work.

7:00 pm:  Dinner

Evening:  Film:  "State of the Planet's Wildlife" narrated by Matt Damon

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 - 9:15 am: Scientific Citizenship - Translating Research into Action 
Presenter:  Patricia Conrad, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
                Conrad, a veterinary parasitologist, is committed as a scientist to make sure her research is relevant to human, animal and ecosystem health, providing much-needed information for decision-makers.  She has taken this commitment one step further by seeking special training in communicating science.  She'll share her thoughts and experiences.

9:30 - 11:00 am: One World, One Health
Presenter:  Steve Osofsky, Wildlife Conservation Society Field Veterinary Program
                Impacts from interactions between domestic animals and wildlife and habitat are often profound. The issues at this interface are of critical importance to the long-term ecological and sociopolitical security of national parks, game reserves and grazing lands worldwide. The Animal Health for the Environment And Development (AHEAD) program helps catalyze problem-solving in the places where tensions and challenges at the livestock health/wildlife health/human health interface are often greatest.
  
11:15 am - 12:15 pm: Highly pathogenic avian influenza:  Global vigilance in a "One Health" World
Presenter: Kristine Smith, Wildlife Conservation Society
                Smith has been instrumental in the implementation of the Global Avian Influenza Network for Surveillance, GAINS, which links wildlife health and conservation efforts with public health and agricultural interests around the world ­– with a common purpose. She'll discuss how GAINS  works, along with the challenges inherent in building and maintaining such a program.

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 3:30 pm: Endocrine Disruptors: Animals as Sentinels for Environmental Contamination
Presenter: Duncan C. Ferguson, VMD, PhD, DACVIM, DACVCP, Univ. of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine
                A variety of small molecules have made it into the household and environment because standard toxicological studies evaluated toxicity only at very high doses.  Ignored was the “inverted U” –shaped dose-response curve maximal toxicological effects are seen at low “endocrine” doses. We will discuss the concepts and
mechanisms of endocrine disruptors, and provide examples of how domestic and wild animals may serve as sentinels of human exposure. The socioeconomic and regulatory issues which arise when these scientific issues surface will also be raised for discussion.

3:45 - 5:00 pm: African Elephants: Saving an Iconic Species from Overpopulation
Presenter:  Mark Stetter, Disney Animal Programs
                Stetter will describe his collaborative work to assist wildlife managers in South Africa with the problem of elephant overpopulation in parks and reserves by developing techniques for surgical sterilization of free-ranging elephants in the field.

6:30 pm:  Dinner

Evening: Introduction to Envirovet 2008 in Tanzania
Presenter:  Deana Clifford, UC Davis Wildlife Health Center
                Clifford will provide a glimpse of your three weeks in Tanzania:  the schedule, logistics, the people you will meet, and the sites and projects you will visit.

Wednesday July 2 CASE STUDIES IN ECOSYSTEM HEALTH (cont)

7:00 am:  Breakfast

8:00 - 9:15 am:  Florida and the Florida Panther: Saving an Iconic Species from Extinction
Presenter: Mark Cunningham, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
                Cunningham will provide a “big picture” view of the ecosystem health challenges facing the state of Florida, about how the Florida panther serves as its proverbial “canary in a coalmine,” and on veterinary issues related to Florida panther management and conservation.

9:30 - 10:45 am: Honeybee to Rhinoceros: Conservation engages all forms of life
Presenter:  Robin Radcliffe, Cornell University and the International Rhino Foundation
                Radcliffe's work focuses on the health and conservation of rhinoceros species around the globe, yet his interest in finding sustainable conservation solutions is broad-based.  He will compare and contrast significant conservation challenges facing two seemingly disparate taxonomic organisms:  the tiny honeybee on one end of the size scale and the megavertebrate rhinoceroses on the other.  He will challenge students to think beyond the classic “flagship” species concept for preserving organisms that fascinate humans to embrace an ethic of stewardship for all parts of the ecosystem: an ethic that welcomes local people and brings their own unique set of skills to the table.

11:00 am - 12:30 pm: Carnivore Conservation and Medicine:  Lessons learned from captivity and the wild
Presenter:  Linda Munson, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine  
                Munson will discuss her research on the health of captive and wild cheetah and Channel Island fox populations, her collaborations with the non-profit organizations like the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia, which strives to reduce conflict between these species and communities, and will put in a plug for the vital role that pathology plays in understanding and contributing to conservation.

12:30 pm:  Lunch

1:30 - 3:00 pm:  The Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project
Presenter:  Mike Cranfield, Maryland Zoo
As the Director of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project, Cranfield is closely involved with addressing the complex human health and welfare issues surrounding the conservation of mountain gorillas, including the vital role that ecotourism plays in protecting the species from extinction, as well as the critical role that veterinary medicine plays in ensuring the sustainability of the species. 

3:15 - 4:45 pm: Wildlife Veterinary Medicine in the 21st Century
Presenter: Dave Hunter, Turner Enterprises, Inc. and Turner Endangered Species Fund
                Hunter spent the first part of his career as a wildlife veterinarian working for state wildlife agencies in California and Idaho, and now serves as head veterinarian for the domestic and wild animal populations living on Ted Turner's ranches in North and South. His experiences as a wildlife veterinarian range from darting bighorn sheep to negotiating park boundaries in foreign countries. 

6:00 pm:  Party at the Pavilion

*****************

July 3-4:  Days off at White Oak

July 5:  Depart White Oak for Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute

Arrival and Check-in, Introduction to the Facilities
                                                                                                                                                               
Saturday, July 5                 Arrival at lodging and Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (FAU, HBOI)

11:00 AM:                            Students arrive at Sandhurst Inn on the Fort Pierce Inlet of South Hutchinson Island, Florida and check into rooms.   

                                                Faculty will have lodging at FAU, HBOI.  Check in at the Security Guard Post at the front gate, get security badges and move into housing. 

Noon:                                     Students depart in vans from the hotel lobby for FAU, HBOI.  Check in at the Security Guard Post at the front gate, get security badges, and go to the Education Center. 

12:15 PM:                            Meet in the Education Center (near the bronze walking woman), in the lobby where you see all the glass for the opening luncheon.

1:00 - 1:30 PM:                   Welcome to HBOI, History of the Institution, Key Personnel, Some of What to Expect.  Dr. Dennis Hanisak, Director and Ms. Brandy Ninesling, Research Assistant and Laboratory Leader of the FAU, HBOI Marine Education Unit, and Dr. Val Beasley, Envirovet Program in Wildlife and Ecosystem Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois.  

1:30 – 2:30 PM                   Bottlenose Dolphin Health Assessment Project.  Dr. Gregory Bossart, Division of Marine Mammal Research and Conservation, FAU, HBOI.    

2:30 – 3:30 PM:                  Tour of the HBOI Campus, and Submarine Facility.  Ms. Ninesling and James Nelson, FAU, HBOI Marine Operations.   

                                Assessing and Restoring Freshwater, Estuarine, and Marine Ecosystem Health

4:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Reef Biodiversity, Ecology, Geology, Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, Toxicology, and Management.  Marine detritus/fomites as a carrier of disease agents.  Dr. Laurie Richardson, Florida International University, Miami, FL.   

6:00 – 7:00 PM:                  Dinner 

7:00 – 8:00 PM:                  Free-ranging discussion on scientific perspectives, careers, and grantsmanship.  Dr. Richardson.    

Sunday, July 6

8:00 AM – 10:00 AM:       Principles of Ecosystem Management and Everglades Ecological Restoration as a Case Study.  Dr. Lorraine Heisler, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Vero Beach, Florida.    

10:00 AM – Noon:              Smithsonian Marine Ecosystems Exhibit in Ft. Pierce.  Tour including multiple species of coral in mixed species exhibits, features the Oculina deep water coral, aspects of ecology, biology, and saltwater aquarium management.    Smithsonian scientists.   Dr. Richardson and Ms. Ninesling.    

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Aquatic/Marine Ecology.  Watersheds, basic energetics, nutrient flows, currents, tides, mixing, salinity, temperature, in estuarine, coastal, and deeper water marine ecosystems.  Dr. David Cox, David Cox Consulting, Vero Beach, Florida.    

3:00 – 4:00 PM:                  Marine community types:  rocky intertidal, soft-sediment, salt marsh, seagrass, rocky subtidal, deep-sea.  Dynamics of nutrient enrichment and interactions among plankton, macrophytes, micro- and macro-invertebrates and vertebrates in coastal and marine ecosystems.  Dr. Scott Haskell, Yuba College, Marysville, California.    

4:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Indicators of aquatic ecological stress and how they reflect “reversible” vs “irreversible” change.  Marine microbial ecology and emerging infectious diseases.  Keystone invertebrate populations as indicators of aquatic ecosystem health.    Dr. Haskell.   

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner.

6:00 – 6:30 PM:                  Plan for July 7 AM field exercises.  What we’ll be looking for, seeing, and measuring, how and why we will make these assessments.  Drs. Cox, Haskell, and Proffitt, and Ms. Ninesling. 

Monday, July 7

8:00 AM – Noon:                Environmental Ecological Assessments and Sampling.  Comparisons of water quality parameters, plankton, nekton, macrophytes, and macro-invertebrates in the water column and benthic zones of clean and contaminated areas.  Students will be split into groups and will rotate through each area.  Sampling water and sediments for toxicologic analyses.  Students participate in all phases.  Ms. Ninesling, Drs. Cox, Haskell and Proffitt.   

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Husbandry and procedures for marine invertebrates for short-term observational, interactive, and terminal sampling studies.  Examine specimens collected from the field in the lab.  Drs. Cox and Haskell and Ms. Ninesling.   

3:00 – 4:00 PM:                  Coral Hatchery.  Mr. Dustin Dorton,  President, Oceans, Reefs, and Aquariums.  FAU, HBOI.   

4:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Drug Discovery from Marine Organisms.  Dr. Peter McCarthy, FAU, HBOI.    

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner.

6:00 – 8:00 PM:                  Exotic/Introduced Species: Management and Control.  Is eradication possible?  Dr. Jeff Davidson, Atlantic Veterinary College, Prince Edward Island, Canada.   

Tuesday, July 8

8:00 – 9:00 AM:                  Form, Function, and Health Problems of Bivalves.  Management or ecosystem rehabilitation for health of these organisms.  Dr. Davidson  

9:00 – 10:00 AM:               Form, Function, and Health Problems of Sea Urchins.  Management or ecosystem rehabilitation for health of these organisms in the wild.  Dr. Haskell

10:00 AM – Noon:              Form, Function, and Health Problems of Aquatic Arthropods.  Management and ecosystem rehabilitation for sustainable health of these organisms in the wild.  Humane treatment and methods for euthanasia of invertebrate species.     Dr. Haskell.   

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Open and Semi-open Aquaculture Systems Used to Produce Invertebrates for Human Food.  Differences among species.  Infectious and toxicologic diseases, and methods of disease prevention.  Dr. Davidson.     

3:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Comparative Anatomy and Bleeding of Aquatic Invertebrates, Hematology, Euthanasia, Necropsy Methods, Morphology and Health Assessments.  Drs. Davidson and Haskell.    

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner.

Evening:                               Beach Walk.  Kick back.
 
Morphology, Physiology, and Management of Fishes, Amphibians, and Aquatic Reptiles in Enclosed Systems and the Wild.  Microbial, Parasitic, and Toxic Stressors.   Island-Based Fish Anesthesia, Health Monitoring, and Diagnostic Sampling.

Wednesday, July 9            

8:00 – 9:00 AM:                  Comparative Morphology of Aquatic Fishes.  Reproduction and development in the water.   Dr. Roy Yanong, Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory, Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Ruskin, Florida.    
                                                                                               
9:00 AM – Noon:                Comparative Morphology of Amphibians, Reptiles, and Birds (gulls and related birds, waterfowl, aquatic-feeding raptors, penguins, and other sea birds).  Integumentary, digestive, respiratory, circulatory, digestive, urinary, and reproductive adaptations; and how these set the stage for infectious and toxicologic diseases.  Dr. Debbie Myers, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.   
Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Comparative Physiology, Metabolism, and Pharmacokinetics/Toxicokinetics in Fishes.  Cardiorespiratory physiology, and renal physiology.  The gill as a respiratory, metabolic, and excretory organ.  Phase I and Phase II metabolism by fishes.  Influence of body size, temperature, and other environmental variables on xenobiotic fate in fishes.  Dr. Kevin Kleinow, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.     

3:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Generalized Stress Responses and Infectious Diseases in Fishes.  Noninfectious and microbial stressors in aquatic systems: temperature, overcrowding, biological oxygen demand, ammonia cycle, diagnostic bacteriology and virology in fishes.  Case histories.  Dr. Kat Hadfield, National Aquarium, Baltimore, Maryland.   

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner.

6:00 – 7:00 PM:                  Open Forum on Water Use, and Health/Sustainability Issues.   Dr. Kleinow.   
 
7:00 – 8:30 PM:                  Dissection  Lab:  Frogs, Salamanders, Aquatic Chelonians, Aquatic Snakes, and an Alligators.  Drs. Hadfield, Haskell, and Kleinow.      

Thursday, July 10

8:00 – 10:00 AM:               Fish Parasitology –  Major parasite groups of fishes, focusing on metazoan parasites.  Impacts of environmental changes.  Dr.  Hadfield.   
                                                                                                                                               
10:00 AM – Noon:              Fish Parasitology, Continued – Protozoans, Microsporidia, and Myxosporea of Fishes.  Taxonomy, pathogenesis, and major diseases caused by these organisms.  Dr. Roy Yanong.   

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 PM:                  Physical Examination Methods for Fishes.  Dr. Hadfield.    

2:00 – 4:00 PM:                  Aquaculture and Fish Health.  Part 1.  Pathobiological pathways leading to non-infectious and infectious diseases implications for productivity.   Part 2.  Diverging viewpoints on impacts of intensive aquaculture on the environment.  Dr. Yanong.   

4:00 – 5:30 PM:                  Tour of FAU, HBOI Aquaculture Facilities for Culture of Food and Ornamental Fishes.  Introduction to organisms and culture systems by facility personnel.   Ms. Amber Shawl and Dr. Paul Wills of the Aquaculture Research and Education Program of FAU, HBOI, and Drs. Yanong, Hadfield, and Haskell.    

5:30 – 6:30 PM:                  Dinner.

Evening:                               Beach Walk.  Kick Back.

Friday, July 11

8:00 AM -Noon:                  Seining, Fish Blood Collection, Anesthesia, Euthanasia, Toxicology, Parasitology, and Field Necropsy.  Fish collection using bag seines and boats off the spoil islands in the Indian River Lagoon.  Field & laboratory examinations.  Drs. Hadfield, Yanong, and Haskell, Ms. Ninesling, and Mr. Jerry Corsaut of the FAU, HBOI Aquatic Field Research Group.    

Noon – 1 PM:      Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 PM:                 Ecosystem-based fishery management.  Dr. Haskell.   

2:00 – 4:00 PM:                  Amphibian Infectious Diseases and Anesthesia for Amphibians.  Dr. Hadfield.    

4:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Diseases of Aquatic Reptiles - Sea Turtles, Sea Snakes, Crocodilians.   Dr. Hadfield.   

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner

6:00 – 7:30 PM:                  Amphibians, Amphibian Declines, and Amphibian Eco-toxicology.  Endocrine disruption, and the likely direct and indirect impacts of toxic agents.  Dr. Beasley.

Saturday, July 12              

8:00 – 10:00 AM:               Introduction to Ecotoxicology.  Dr. Beasley.

10:00 AM – Noon:              Endocrine Disruptors and Endocrine Disruption in Fishes.  Background on the endocrine system and endocrine disruptors.  Case studies of endocrine disruption in fishes.  A systems biology approach to endocrine disruption research.  Dr. Jim Gelsleichter, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL.   

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.  

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Endocrine Disruption in Alligators and other Vertebrates.  Dr. Louis Guillette, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.    

3:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Contaminants and Wild Birds.   Dr. Michael Fry, American Bird Conservancy, Washington, DC.   

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner.

6:00 – 8:00 PM:                  Freshwater (Cyanobacterial) and Marine Phycotoxicology in Homeothermic Vertebrates.  Lethal mechanisms and diagnostic criteria of phycotoxin poisoning of aquatic birds and marine mammals Freshwater and brackish sources and principal effects of cyclic peptide hepatotoxins (microcystins and nodularin) and the neurotoxins, anatoxin-a, anatoxin-a(s), and saxitoxins.  Estuarine and marine sources and principal effects of saxitoxin, domoic acid, and brevetoxins in birds and marine mammals.  Dr. Beasley.

 Major Infectious, Parasitic, and Toxic Diseases of Waterfowl and Raptors.

Sunday, July 13                 

8:00 – 10:00 AM:               Avian Influenza - Overview of the Risks of a Pandemic, Countermeasures, and Communications.  Implications for the Military and Developing Countries.  Dr. Tracy DuVernoy, Department of Defense, Global Emerging Infections Surveillance & Response System [DoD-GEIS, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.   

10:00 – 11:00 AM:             Virology Update and Why RNA Viruses are So Often Involved in Emerging and Re-emerging Diseases.  Dr. Daniel Martineau,  Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Center (Quebec region), Département de Pathologie et Microbiologie Vétérinaire, Faculté de Médecine Vétérinaire, Université de Montréal, St. Hyacinth, Quebec, Canada.     

11:00 AM – Noon:              Avian Pathology and Infectious Diseases:  Major Viral, Bacterial, Fungal, and Parasitic Diseases of Waterfowl and Raptors.   Dr. Scott Terrell, Disney Animal Kingdom, Orlando, FL. 

Noon – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.

1:00 – 2:00 PM:                  Avian Pathology and Infectious Diseases (Continued).  Dr. Terrell

2:00 – 2:30 PM:                  Flamingo Die-offs in East Africa.  Dr. Beasley.

2:30 – 5:00 PM:                  Influenza Training Workshop.   Drs. Ziccardi and Terrell.   

5:00 – 6:00 PM:                  Dinner

6:00 – 8:00 PM:                  Oiled wildlife, petroleum and other hydrocarbon spills, and the Oiled Wildlife Care Network of the University of California-Davis.  Management of contaminated animals.  Working with the public.  Prevention of spills.  Dr. Mike Ziccardi, Wildlife Health Center, University of California, Davis, CA.   

Monday, July 14               

8:00 – 10:00 AM:               Impacts of Disease on Endangered Species Programs.  Contaminants and Waterbirds:  Research in Florida.  Dr. Marilyn Spalding.  College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL.    

10:00 AM – Noon:              Avian Necropsy Laboratory.  Examination of a range of bird species that died in the field due to a wide array of stressors.   Drs. Terrell, Spalding, Ziccardi, and Beasley.   

12:00 – 1:00 PM:                Lunch.  

            Marine Mammals:  Morphology, Physiology, Infectious and Toxicologic Diseases. 
           
Monday, July 14 (Continued)

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                  Adaptive Anatomy and Physiology of Marine Mammals.  Dr. Graham Worthy Physiological Ecology and Bioenergetics Laboratory, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.  

3:00 – 4:30 PM:                  Emerging Diseases of Marine Mammals.  Dr. Bossart.   

4:30 – 5:30 PM:                  A Veterinary Perspective on Florida Manatee Habitat.  Hundreds of people moved into Florida every day for many years.  Does this tremendous human population growth threaten survival of the Florida manatee?  Or, can manatees and Floridians coexist?  Artificial warm-water refuges, reductions in natural springs, and human-related deaths.  Dr. Martine de Wit, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Marine Mammal Pathobiology Laboratory, St. Petersburg, FL.   

5:30 – 6:30 PM:                  Dinner.
                                                                                                                                                                               
6:30 – 8:30 PM:                  Toxicology and Pathology of Beluga Whales in the St. Lawrence Estuary.  Dr. Martineau.  

Tuesday, July 15

8:00 – 10:00 AM:               Endangered Southern Sea Otters, a Spatial Epidemiology Transdisciplinary Program of Research and Stewardship.  Dr. David Jessup, California Division of Fish and Game Toxicology and Pathology of Beluga Whales in the St. Lawrence River.   

10:00 AM – Noon:              Manatees and Marine Mammal Conservation Medicine.  Dr. Bossart.   

Noon – 1 PM:                      Lunch.

1:00 – 3:00 PM:                 Monitoring Arctic Marine Mammal Health.  Working with Subsistence Cultures and Federal Agencies.  Heavy metals and organohalogen contaminants in marine mammals.  Dr. Todd O’Hara,  Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK (Powerpoint/telephone presentation.  Dr. O’Hara will be in a remote village in Alaska—Accordingly, if communications fail, we will view relevant videos on marine mammal and public health concerns of the Arctic.).   

3:00 – 5:00 PM:                  Necropsy Lab.  Examination of a range of species of marine mammals that died in the field due to a wide array of stressors.     (Marine Mammal Necropsy Facility).  Drs. Bossart, Martineau, de Wit, and FAU, HBOI staff.    

5:00 – 6:30 PM:                  Shower.

6:30 – 7:30 PM:                  Final (Bar-b-que) Dinner at Harbor Branch.   

Evening:                               Beach Walk.  Kick Back. 

Wednesday, July 16

8:00 – 9:00 AM:                  Late Breakfast

9:00 AM:                             Fun morning.  Examine freshwater ecosystem, and/or examine reef.   (Activities are weather and water conditions permitting).  Ms. Ninesling.   

Noon :                                    Lunch

                                                Pack, rest.