New Laboratory at Ranomafana National Park Research Station, Madagascar

纽约州立大学石溪分校的赖特博士获得了一笔拨款，用于继续升级拉诺马法纳国家公园的研究站。这次升级将提高空间站实现训练和研究双重目标的能力。在过去的五年里，马达加斯加的拉诺马法纳国家公园研究站(RNPRS)的年使用量从75名科学家增加到182名。然而，这些设施对于这些使用水平来说太小了，为现代科学研究技术提供的实验室设施不足，而且与国际社会没有直接联系。以前国家科学基金会的支助(DEB-9602577和DEB-9978270)帮助规划了升级和建造教室/餐厅和行政综合体。这笔赠款用于建造一个有空调的实验室，以便在这个偏远的热带雨林地区使用现代科学研究技术。新实验室将毗邻并连接第一阶段正在建设的餐饮/教室和行政大楼。大楼将有三层楼高，提供675平方米的楼面空间和150平方米的阳台。所有实验室都将配备水槽、实验台、110V和220V的充足电源插座，以及上了锁的储藏室。这些实验室将被设计为通用的，但每一层都将包括专门的设备，以满足当前的研究需求。南侧的窗户可以俯瞰风景秀丽的纳莫罗纳河和河对面的森林国家公园。马达加斯加是世界十大生物多样性热点地区之一，该地区拥有世界上不成比例的大量动植物物种。马达加斯加的大多数物种都是地方性物种(在世界其他地方找不到)，因为该岛与大陆分离了8800万年，物种是在孤立的情况下进化的。马达加斯加的热带雨林栖息地受到人类活动(伐木、砍伐和焚烧农业、狩猎)的严重威胁，导致79%的原始热带雨林栖息地消失。高度的物种多样性、长期的与世隔绝、高度的地方性和严重的威胁使马达加斯加热带雨林成为强烈的科学和保护兴趣的焦点。由于同样的原因，拉诺马法纳国家公园的热带雨林是与新热带、非洲和亚洲一些研究较好的热带雨林遗址进行极好的比较。拉诺马法纳国家公园研究站位于拉诺马法纳国家公园，保护43,500公顷土地。位于马达加斯加东南部的热带雨林。该空间站由隶属于纽约州立大学石溪分校的热带环境保护研究所(ICTE)运营。自1989年空间站建成以来，超过125名教职员工级别的研究人员和两倍多的学生(大多数来自美国大学)在RNP进行了研究。RNPR是马达加斯加最重要的热带雨林研究和培训中心，也是唯一一个拥有一座以上永久建筑的研究站。RNPR的研究将有助于地方、国家和国际了解这一独特热带雨林的动态，以及如何保护其受到威胁的生物多样性。RNPR的培训项目将惠及更多的美国本科生和研究生，以及马达加斯加的学生、科学家和政策制定者。

A grant has been awarded to Dr. Wright at the State University of New York at Stony Brook to continue the upgrade of the research station at Ranomafana National Park. This upgrade will improve the ability of the station to meet its twin goals of training and research. Annual use of the Ranomafana National Park Research Station (RNPRS) in Madagascar has grown from 75 to up to 182 scientists in the past five years. However the facilities are too small for these usage levels, provide inadequate laboratory facilities for modern scientific research techniques, and have no direct communication with the international community. Previous NSF support (DEB-9602577 and DEB-9978270) contributed to the planning of the upgrade and the construction of a classroom/dining room and administrative complex. This grant provides funds to construct an air-conditioned laboratory to permit modern scientific research techniques in this remote rainforest site.The new laboratory will be adjacent to and connected to the Dining/Classroom and Administration building being constructed during Phase I. The building will be three stories high, providing 675 m2 of floor space and 150 m2 of veranda. All labs will have sinks, lab benches, ample electrical outlets at 110V and 220V, and locked storage. The labs will be designed to be general-use, but each floor will include specialized equipment to address current research needs. Windows on the south side will overlook the scenic Namorona River and the forested national park across the river.Madagascar is one of the world's top ten biodiversity hot spots, containing a disproportionately high number of the world's plant and animal species for its area. Most of Madagascar's species are endemic (found nowhere else in the world) because the island has been separated from the mainland for 88 million years and species have evolved in isolation. The rain forest habitat of Madagascar is severely threatened by human activities (logging, slash and burn agriculture, hunting) resulting in the disappearance of 79% of the original rain forest habitat. High species diversity, long isolation, high endemicity, and severe threat make Madagascar rain forests a focus of intense scientific and conservation interest. For these same reasons, the rain forest at Ranomafana National Park serves as an excellent comparison to some of the better-studied rain forest sites in the Neotropics, Africa, and Asia. Ranomafana National Park Research Station is located in Ranomafana National Park, which protects 43,500 ha. of rain forest in southeast Madagascar. The station is operated by the Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments (ICTE), affiliated with the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Over 125 faculty-level researchers and over twice that number of students, most from US universities, have conducted research at RNP since the station was built in 1989. The RNPRS is the most important center for rain forest research and training in Madagascar and the only research station with more than one permanent building. Research at the RNPRS will contribute to local, national, and international understanding of the dynamics of this unique rain forest, as well as how to protect it's threatened biodiversity. Training programs at the RNPRS will reach greater numbers of US undergraduate and graduate students, and Malagasy students, scientists, and policy makers.