2005 Southeastern
Wildlife Conclave

March 3-5, 2005

J. Wayne Reitz Union l University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida

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Welcome

Dear Student Members,

University of Florida’s Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society proudly welcomes each of you to the 2005 Southeastern Wildlife Conclave to be held in Gainesville, FL, on March 3-5.

We will have a challenging quiz bowl and team competition to test your brain and a fun obstacle course to test your brawn (sorry, no mountains to climb this year but potential for lots of mud). Start practicing your animal calling now- last year’s rooster will be hard to top.

A variety of field trips has been arranged that you will find enjoyable, informative and thought provoking. Register early and get your first pick! Early departure for several of the trips is needed to allow sufficient travel time and on-site activities.

Keep an eye on the weather channel for late-winter frontal activity; it has snowed in Gainesville during March, so bring some warm clothing. Note: it is a 2-hr drive to Daytona Beach, and it will be Bike Week.

Please contact me, George Tanner at tannerg@wec.ufl.edu, or (352) 846-0570, if you have any questions.

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Who Should Attend?

Student Chapters of The Wildlife Society within the Southeastern US Region:

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Agenda

Thursday, March 3, 2005

Friday, March 4, 2005

Saturday, March 5, 2005

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Conclave Location

The Conclave location is located in Gainesville, Florida, at the J. Wayne Reitz Union on the University of Florida Campus. Some events will be held off campus and can be found by using the University of Florida's electronic Campus Map or the interactive map of the City of Gainesville. There are plenty of fast food restaurants located in the Reitz Union and vending machines are located on several floors. The second floor is where the Rion Ballroom and the large Auditorium are located. Registration will also be located on the second floor and you should check-in as soon as possible when you arrive on Thursday afternoon to beat the crowds. Registration will be open from 3:00pm to 8:00pm. The dinner and game-calling event will be the first event held in the Rion Ballroom and you will need to check-in at the Conclave Registration Table for registration materials.

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Hotel Accommodations

A block of rooms has been reserved at 2 area hotels for a special per night rate of $69 quad occupancy (plus 10% tax).  To receive the special group rate, call the hotels directly to make a reservation and identify yourself as a participant of the 2005 Southeastern Wildlife Conclave.  We encourage attendees to take advantage of the special group rate being offered by The Cabot Lodge Hotel and The Holiday Inn University Center.  The deadline for making your hotel reservation at either hotel is Friday, February 11, 2005.  After that date, we cannot guarantee a room will be available at the special rate. 

Holiday Inn University Center (adjacent to UF Campus)
1250 W. University Avenue (I-75, Exit 385; go about 5 miles east to hotel)
Gainesville, Florida 32601
Phone: (352) 376-1661

The Cabot Lodge Hotel (I-75, Exit 385, Archer Road or SR 24)
3726 SW 40 Blvd.
Gainesville, Florida  32608
Phone: (352) 375-2400 

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Awards Banquet Site

The Saturday evening Awards Banquet will be held at the Hilton University of Florida Conference Center.  It is located across from the University at 1714 SW 34th Street in Gainesville [Phone: (352) 371-3600].  If you are coming from I-75, go east on SR 24 (Archer Rd.) to the intersection of SW 34th Street and Archer Road and turn left.  The Hotel is approximately 1/2 mile on the left. 

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Field Trip Descriptions

(Field trip space is limited.  Please note the maximum number allowed in each field trip).

Nuisance Wildlife Management - Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Lab:  Research facility focused on managing nuisance wildlife species (native and alien) in both rural and urban settings. (50)

USGS Florida Integrated Science Center: Featuring ecological research on freshwater and marine fishes, endangered southeastern US mollusks, and regional herpetofauna. (50)

Bird Banding:  Use of mist nets and play-back calling to capture passerine species. Bird handling and banding techniques demonstrated (very early morning departure). (20)

Mesomammal Trapping and Handling: Live capture of raccoon, oppossum, and possibly gray fox; anesthetization and morphometric data gathering. (50)

Saltwater Marsh Ecosystems:  Cedar Key area on Gulf of Mexico; 65 miles from Gainesville- mudflats, tidal creeks, and Spartina/Juncus marshes. Bring binoculars and camera and expect to get your feet wet. Early morning departure. (50)

Wildlife Law Enforcement:  Enforcing regulations in both freshwater, marine and terrestrial environments. Description of enducational and training requirements. (50)

Fire Prescription and Management:  Review process of planning a prescribed fire; examine the endangered longleaf pine/wiregrass sandhills ecosystem that have been prescribed burns. (50)

Radio Telemetry:  Review and demonstration of equipment used in many wildlife studies. Hands on experience in radio location of hidden transmitters. (20)

Environmental Education- from Nature to Zoo Animals:  Visit Morningside Nature Center and discuss environmental education programming for the general public and see a early 1900s farmstead.  Visit the Sante Fe Community College teaching zoo program. Discuss educational opportunities using zoo animals and animal husbandry requirements for a healthy living environment for zoo animals.  (50)

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Field Day Events Itinerary: (location to be determined)

Saturday, March 5, 2005

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Registration Information

The registration fees, combined with sponsorship funds, provides attendees with a 2005 Wildlife Conclave tote bag and t-shirt, Thursday night buffet dinner, beverages for Friday evening dance, and the Awards Banquet on Saturday evening.   Additional tickets will be on sale for $30 each for anyone attending the banquet only. 

Registration Fees - All figures are presented in US dollars ($).

Refund Policy: Requests for registration refunds will be honored if a written notice of cancellation is received by the IFAS Office of Conferences and Institutes on or before February 11, 2005. A $10 processing fee will be deducted from all refunds. Sorry, no refunds will be honored for cancellation after February 11, 2005.

Special Needs: Participants with special needs can be reasonably accommodated by contacting the Office of Conferences & Institutes at least 10 working days prior to the conference. We can be reached by phone at 1-352-392-5930, by fax at 1-352-392-9734, or by calling 1-800-955-8771 (TDD). The TDD number can only be accessed from within the State of Florida. 

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Conclave Rules

Entries for the creative and talent competitions must be submitted upon registration. Materials will be on display until judging. Individuals must be present to accept the award. The decision of the judges will be final.

Essay: The essay topic is "Living With Nuisance Wildlife: A Challenge That Will Not Go Away." The essay must be a typed, double-spaced, and no more than three pages in length not including the literature cited. University of Florida faculty will perform judging. To eliminate biases, please do not put your name or school name on the essay. Instead each essay will be assigned a unique number

Art: Categories include drawing, painting, and "free form" (e.g., sculptures, carving, etc.). Entries must have a wildlife-related theme. Each individual may enter only one item over 14" x 18".

Photography: There will be 2 categories: black and white and color print. Pictures must contain a wildlife related theme. There is a limit of three entries per entrant per category. Entries that have previously published or have won any other competition will not be permitted.

Game Calling: A calling contest will be held at the Thursday night social. The categories are: duck, turkey, goose, other game, other non-game. The use of calling devises will be permitted. There is a limit of two callers per category per school.

Obstacle Course: Each school can enter one team of 4 members. Each team will be responsible for completing a series of tasks. The team to complete the course in the least amount of time will be the winners. Contestants should plan on getting wet and muddy; bring an extra set of clothes and dry pair of shoes.

Archery: Compound, Recurve, or Long Bow only. Be prepared for 10-15 targets. Limited to 5 arrows. Must use your own equipment. No sharing. Limit 2 shooters per school.

Canoe Competition: Each team must consist of two members. Once the competition begins, each team must complete one or more tasks prior to return trip to shore. Contestants will be using canoes and personal flotation devices that will be provided. The school completing the course in the least amount of time will be the winners.

Plant Identification: This competition will consist of up to 20 trees, shrubs or vines. Scoring will be as follows: one point per correct name: family, genus and specific epithet. Up to two representatives may participate from each school, but only the highest score will count.

Radiotelemetry: Up to two participants per school. Equipment will be provided. Participants will determine azimuths to transmitters. Event will be timed to handle tie breakers.

Stations will be set up with receivers and teams will take bearings on transmitters from these stations. This event will be timed, so speed plays a role. The team that has the lowest error in the estimated location of the transmitters will be declared the winners.

Orienteering: Each school can enter one team of 2 members. Each team must supply their own compass. Each team will be randomly assigned to one of seven courses. This will be a timed event in the case of a tie of nearest distance to end point. No distance measuring devices are permitted.

The team competition will include all representatives from the schools. Stations will be set up along a trail and will include but not be limited to species identification, equipment usage, and habitat assessment. Some of the stations will be timed so getting from station to station quickly is recommended. Teamwork is a must. All members should wear appropriate clothing and footwear. Scores from each station will be totaled and the team with the highest score will be declared the winners.

Quiz Bowl Rules

1. Each team (1 team/ school) may consist of up to five players with no more than four participating at once (i.e., 1 team member will be an alternate). There may be no more than two graduate students per team. A graduate student is defined as a person that does not hold an advanced degree, thus Ph.D. students are not eligible to compete in Quiz Bowl.

2. Quiz bowl is a double elimination tournament. Team pairings will be chosen at random for the first round. Pairings in subsequent rounds will be determined by a team’s ability to win. If a team advances to the final round unbeaten, the challenging team (winner from the loser’s bracket) must beat the undefeated team in two consecutive rounds to win first place.

3. Matches will be 10 minutes, except for the final round, which will be 15 minutes.

4. When the final bell rings, the game is over. If the game ends while a question is being asked, the game ends at that point. If the final bell rings while a toss-up or bonus question is being answered, the game ends after the allotted time for the answer has expired. For the purpose of this rule, players who have signaled, but have not been acknowledged, will be allowed to answer. Should time expire while a toss-up question is being answered correctly, there will be a bonus question awarded if it has bearing on the outcome of the game.

5. On all questions, the first answer given will be the one accepted (i.e., there will be no second thoughts). The moderator reserves the right to ask the respondent to "be more specific."

6. If the pronunciation of the answer to a taxonomically related question is unclear to the moderator, the respondent may be asked to spell the answer. If spelled incorrectly, the answer will be considered incorrect.

7. If the score is tied at the end of the match, the match will be extended an additional 5 minutes.

8. The team with the highest score at the end of the match will be the winner.

9. A judging committee of the host school faculty members, professional wildlife biologists, etc., will be the referees of any challenge that may arise.

Specific Rules for Toss-up Questions

1. Matches begin with a toss-up question open to both teams. Each toss up question is worth ten points

2. Only one person may answer a toss-up question. A team member signals to answer by pressing a button that activates a buzzer and light. The first team member to respond is indicated by their individual light.

3. Following the reading of a toss-up question, 5 seconds will be allowed for a team to signal for an answer. If no one signals within the allotted time, the moderator will give the answer and the next question will be asked.

4. The moderator will acknowledge the signal by verbally announcing the team member’s school and number of the player. If the player answers before being acknowledged, the moderator will state the answer cannot be accepted and the opposing team will be given a chance to signal (5 seconds), be acknowledged, and answer. This rule applies irrespective of whether the unaccepted answer given is correct or incorrect!

5. The team member acknowledged has 10 seconds to answer the question. If the answer is heard from the audience, the question will be discarded. If any discussion occurs between members of a team on a toss-up question, that team forfeits the right to gain points and the other team gets a chance to answer after being acknowledged. This applies regardless if an answer was heard or not.

6. Should a team member give a wrong answer to a toss-up question, the opposing team has a total of 5 seconds in which to signal. The team member will then be acknowledged and allowed an additional 10 seconds to answer the question.

7. A team member may signal to answer a toss-up question as it is being asked. When this occurs, the moderator will stop reading at that point. If, after being acknowledged, the answer given is wrong, the entire question is repeated for the opposing team. One team member must signal and be acknowledged as in all toss-up questions. In the event that a member of the opposing team signals before the question has been repeated, the moderator will stop reading the question, and acknowledge that team member for the answer. If the question was completed, it will not be repeated.

Specific Rules for Bonus Questions

1. A bonus question will consist of 1, 2, or 4 parts. The bonus question, a total of 20 points, will be divided accordingly.

2. Bonus questions are a team effort, but the answer decided upon for each part can only be accepted from the team captain. The team will have a total of 30 seconds in which to answer all parts after the question is completely read.

3. All bonus questions will be oral, audio, video/slide, or carry-on specimen(s).

Challenges

Toss-ups: If an answer ruled incorrect is believed to be correct by a team member, the player can challenge the moderator’s ruling by appealing to the judging committee. Challenges can be made only after the opposing team has had an opportunity to answer. Also, if a member of the opposing team believes an answer ruled correct is incorrect, a challenge to the judging committee may be made. To challenge, a team member should activate the buzzer/light and wait to be recognized! When a challenge is made, the clock will stop until the judges have made their final decision. Challenges must be made before the bonus or next toss-up question is read.

Bonus: Challenges of bonus question rulings must be made before the next toss-up question is read.

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Driving Directions

For your convenience, you may CLICK HERE for the University of Florida's electronic Campus Map. A printed campus map will be provided in your registration materials when you check-in at the Reitz Union. 

Please follow all campus parking and traffic rules while visiting or you will get ticketed.  The driving speed on campus is 20 mph.  The following Area Information will provide you with links to places of interest while staying in Gainesville. 

CLICK HERE for an interactive map of the City of Gainesville.

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Conclave Sponsors

Florida Master Naturalist  Program

Southeastern Cooperative Research Units

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Area Information

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For More Information

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