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The Kathryn Fuller Science for Nature Fund

2009 Seminar Information & Schedule

Questions?
Email Eliot Levine or call  202-495-4596.

Science for Nature Seminars bring distinguished scientists from a variety of fields to Washington D.C. to present cutting edge research of central importance to international conservation. These events provide a regular forum for the conservation community to learn, discuss and network.

Register below ! Every seminar 4:30 - 5:30 p.m. with reception to follow

 November 12 - Melanie Stiassny
Axelrod Research Curator
American Museum of Natural History
Extreme Hydrological Conditions and Complex Channel Topology Drives Population Divergence and Speciation in the Lower Congo River. Read more

Unlike most of the rest of the Congo River, the lower Congo downstream of Pool Malebo to the port town of Matadi is highly channel-constrained with a peculiarly complex hydrology that appears to have isolated it from the remainder of the basin. Channel topology itself is highly heterogeneous, punctuated by underwater canyons of extreme depth. Water velocities are also extreme, even in areas without surface rapids, and recent measurements taken with pirogue-deployed Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCP) have revealed complex flow patterns within the water column including shifting counter directional flows and descending and ascending “walls” of fast moving water. Analysis of remotely sensed data provides an additional view of the numerous macrohabitats and channel features that characterize this hydrologically complex stretch of river. Using the latest remote sensing technologies, and with much on-the-ground sampling and systematic analysis, we are beginning to get a much clearer picture of just how the geomorphological template of the river has played a major role in isolating populations and generating high levels of divergence among diverse clades of fishes.

To date we have documented well over 300 fish species and of these upward of 80 appear to be endemic to the lower Congo region. With such unexpectedly high levels of species richness and endemism associated with a unique hydrological regime, this short stretch represents a model system for exploring the interplay of complex hydraulic conditions, channel features of extreme depth, and diversity generation cast within a broad systematic framework.

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Arun Agrawal
Associate Professor of Natural Resources & Environment
University of Michigan

Andrew Baker
Assistant Professor, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science
University of Miami

Paul R. Ehrlich
Bing Professor of Population Studies,Department of Biological Sciences
Stanford University

Dan Nepstad
Chief Program Officer
Environmental Conservation Programs
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

Douglas N. Rader
Chief Ocean Scientist
Environmental Defense Fund


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Fuller Symposium 2009

Securing Water for Nature and People in a Changing Climate
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