Workshop: A New Generation of Research on Amphibian Declines

揭示生物多样性的模式及其背后的过程是全球保护努力的核心。由于其复杂的生活史，两栖动物在食物网中扮演着重要的角色，参与水生和陆地生态系统之间的能量传递，是生态系统健康的重要指标。这项提案要求为2005年7月6-11日在佛罗里达州坦帕市举行的关于两栖动物衰退的研讨会--新一代两栖动物衰退研究--提供资金。研讨会将由来自美国和拉丁美洲多个国家的学生进行24次演讲。研讨会将通过介绍和讨论两栖动物衰退研究方面亟需的多学科和合作观点，推动科学前沿，聚集在非洲、亚洲、中美洲、北美和南美洲从事尖端研究的国际研究生和博士后群体。这种国际性、跨学科和跨世代的讨论将使科学界成员能够确定两栖动物衰退研究的下一步行动，确定需要进一步研究和资助机会的地理和研究领域。通过巩固主持人之间最近的合作，并通过鼓励观众之间的协作工作，它还将有助于在世界各国之间架起科学计划和智力进步的桥梁。

Uncovering the patterns of biological diversity and the processes behind it are central to global conservation efforts. Due to their complex life cycle, amphibians take an important role in food webs, participate in energy transfer between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and constitute important indicators of ecosystem health. This proposal requests funds for a symposium - A New Generation of Research on Amphibian Declines - on amphibian declines to take place at the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Hepetologists in Tampa, FL, on July 6-11, 2005. The symposium will consist of 24 talks by students drawn from the US and a diversity of countries throughout Latin America. The symposium will push the frontiers of science by presenting and discussing much-needed multidisciplinary and collaborative perspectives on amphibian decline research, gathering an international group of graduate and post-doctoral students conducting cutting-edge research in Africa, Asia, Central, North and South America. This international, interdisciplinary, and cross-generation discussion will enable members of the scientific community to define the next steps in amphibian decline research, identifying the geographic and research areas in need of further studies and funding opportunities. Through the consolidation of recent collaborations among presenters, and by stimulating collaborative work among audience members, it will also help bridge scientific programs and intellectual advances across countries throughout the world.