Raptor Research Foundation Annual Conference 2009

Call for Papers

Papers on any aspect of raptor biology, including behaviour, ecology, physiology, or conservation, are solicited. There will also be six themed symposia for which abstracts can be submitted. To apply for a place on the programme, follow the instructions carefully.

Deadline for receipt of abstracts is 1 July 2008.

The programme will consist of 24 posters, 42 oral presentations organised under general sessions, and 36 oral presentations organised under six symposia sessions with the following themes: Scotland, Persecution, Migration & Wintering, Haliaeetus, Reintroductions, Conservation Management. Submitted abstracts will be reviewed by the scientific programme committee and moderators of symposia: author(s) will be notified of the review results by January 2009. The decision of the review process is final. The scientific programme committee will select and organize papers in appropriate general sessions based on content of the abstract. The committee reserves the right to edit abstracts for punctuation and other grammar, and author(s) will be given the opportunity to revise/edit abstracts of accepted presentations prior to conference. There are no current plans for conference proceedings to be published, although all abstracts will be made available publicly before and after the conference.

Please note on the submitted abstract if it is for oral or poster presentation. If an oral presentation, and if you wish it to be considered for acceptance in a symposium, please also note the name of the symposium theme.

General and Symposia Sessions

Oral presentations will be limited to 25 minutes with an additional 5 minutes for questions. The use of MS Powerpoint is required. Overhead transparencies and 32 mm slides will not be accepted. Please also see the presentation guidelines below.

Poster Session

Posters will be mounted on 90 cm x 90 cm panels, with each poster presentation allocated one panel only, and table-top displays can not be accommodated. Poster presenters are required to attend their poster during the evening poster session on Wednesday 30 September. Posters must be removed by 14:30 on Saturday 3 October at the latest.

Note carefully the following requirements:

• Abstracts must be submitted by email in the correct form as specified below.

• Submit your abstract in your word-processor format (e.g. MS Word, WordPerfect).

• Include a completed copy of the call for papers cover sheet. The form can be downloaded by clicking on this link: COVER SHEET WORD FILE

• Use the first author’s surname in the file names. Send the abstract with the completed cover sheet to: rrf2009@googlemail.com

Sample abstract – follow the directions exactly:

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) Use of Coastal Areas as Determined by Satellite Telemetry

I.L. HAWKS, Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, 4005 South Main Street, Gainesville, FL 32601 U.S.A. I.L. STRIGES, Canadian Wildlife Service, Room 199, 4999-090 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6B 2X3 Canada

It is not necessary to type your abstract in a box, but read the following information carefully before beginning. Your abstract should contain a short introduction to the area of study; a brief account of the background and rationale of the work; a statement of the main findings; and a short passage putting the main findings into general context so it is clear how the results may affect the field of research. Follow the format shown. To this end, your abstract should be one paragraph of no more than 300 words, single spaced throughout. Type the title first, using upper and lower case letters as shown above, and with no more than 100 characters (including spaces). After the title, type the first author's name (use all caps), followed by the mailing address; then type any additional authors and their addresses in similar fashion. Use bold font for the author who will present the paper. Place an asterisk before the name of a student who is eligible for the Andersen award. Leave blank lines between the title, authors’ names and addresses, and text as shown above. Use a font of at least elite size or 11 point, and use italic type only for scientific names. Do not indent the first line of text. After the first use of the common name of each species mentioned, write the scientific name (in italics and parentheses). Capitalize first letters of common names of birds. Whole numbers <10 are spelled out unless accompanied by a unit (e.g., 3cm; 1%). Use metric units. Use these abbreviations without spelling out: hr, min, sec, yr, mo, wk, d, km, cm, mm. Use continental dating (e.g., 10 July 1975), and the 24-hr clock (e.g., 1300 H).

Presentation guidelines

Oral presentations are 25 min followed by 5 min of questions. You should expect the session chair to cut you off at your 25 min time limit. Adequate time for questions, answers and discussion is important to conference attendees.

Presenters must bring their presentations for loading onto a conference computer no later than prior to the session in which they are speaking (before the conference begins for morning sessions and at lunch for afternoon sessions).

Presenters should prepare their presentation slides in Microsoft PowerPoint, and must bring their presentations on a USB Flash drive or a CD for loading onto the conference computer. We advise you to bring a second copy of your presentation, stored on another device, for back-up should your primary copy fail to load or open.

Please review the following guidelines for presenting your talk:

• Evaluations of past conferences show that the quality of presentations is the single most important issue for many conference attendees. Please do everything you can to prepare a presentation that will convey the points you hope to communicate and reflect positively on your work.

• Organise your presentation to state clearly the problem, the issue and/or the reason for your work. Limit your discussion of methodology. Emphasise your results and their implications for others. If part of a themed symposium, relate your work and particularly your results and summary conclusions to the theme of the session.

• Keep your graphics clear, simple, and easy to read. Large tables with many results should be avoided, for example.

• It is important that you prepare high quality visual aids that can be read from the back of the room. We suggest an Arial font at font size 24 or larger, and the use of a background and text colours which provide sufficient contrast to be read easily: a picture as a background to text can often make parts of the text illegible.

• You need to speak clearly and directly to the audience.

• The screens used in the conference rooms will be oriented horizontally (landscape layout). Therefore, we request that you use only horizontal (landscape) presentation slides to ensure that the full extent of the slide can be seen on the screen. The upper and lower portions of vertically oriented presentation slides will not project well onto the screen and may not be visible to the audience.

• Please note that you cannot count on being able to make extensive modifications in time before your presentation will be loaded on the session’s presentation computer. Bring your presentation to the conference in completed form.

• We suggest that you bring your presentations saved on multiple media (e.g. one copy on a USB flash drive and one copy on a CD, or one copy of each of two CDs) so that we will be able to access your presentations should technical problems arise with one of the types of media.

Poster guidelines

Posters must be ready for viewing in the evening poster session on Wednesday 30 September. Poster presenters are required to attend their poster during the poster session. We encourage posters to be left on view for the remainder of the conference so they can be viewed during breaks between oral sessions and after sessions have finished, prior to evening activities. Posters must be removed by 14:30 on Saturday 3 October at the latest.

Posters should be large enough for multiple viewers to read them, but should not exceed 70 cm x 70 cm (and so A2, B2 or C2 paper formats would be appropriate).

Please take note of the following suggestions on poster presentation:

• Divide the contents of your poster into appropriate sections, such as: title, author and affiliation; abstract; methodology; data; results; and conclusions.

• Headings above each poster section should indicate its contents and identify the appropriate sequence for viewing the poster by clearly visible numbers, letters or arrows.

• Use a font pitch of no less than 16 for your text, since most viewers will be standing at least three feet away from a poster.

• Use larger lettering for the poster’s title, author and institutional affiliation (at least 2.5 cm high).

• Avoid fonts that utilize script or are difficult to read.

• If hand lettering is required, use felt-tip black ink.

• Written material should be concise. Save unessential but helpful or interesting secondary points for discussion with your viewers.

• Graphs, charts and tables are particularly eye-catching in posters.

• Your printed conclusions should permit observers to focus on a concise statement of your central findings that lends itself to informal discussion.

• Neutral or greyish poster background is easier on the eyes than a bright colour. Neon colours should be avoided.

• A mailing tube or portfolio case is recommended for transporting your poster and minimising damage.

• A notepad may prove helpful in elaborating further upon your poster or for taking names and addresses of people interested in your research.

• Poster presenters will only need to bring their posters to the conference, as display equipment will be provided.

Sponsors of the Raptor Research Foundation Annual Conference 2009