Virgin Islands National Park 50^th Anniversary

Conference on Marine and Terrestrial Scientific Research

November 1 - 3, 2006

Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS)

Lameshur Bay, St. John, U. S. Virgin Islands

AGENDA (as of October 18, 2006)

NOTE: To view a one page abstract and the speaker’s bio, select the speaker’s name.

November 1, Wednesday

7:30 - 9:00 Registration Open

9:00 - 10:00 Welcoming Session

National Park Service

University of the Virgin Islands

Clean Islands International

Friends of Virgin Islands National Park

The Ocean Conservancy

US Geological Survey

Virgin Islands Government

10:00 - 10:30 Keynote Address:

Persistence and Special Places: Lessons from Virgin Islands National Park

Gary E. Davis, NPS Visiting Chief Scientist, Ocean Programs, U.S. National Park Service, Washington, DC

10:30 - 11:00 Break

11:00 - 12:30 Plenary Session

Review of Cultural Resources on St. John

Mr. Ken Wild, Virgin Islands National Park Service, St. John

Review of Marine Research: 1956 - 2006

Dr. Caroline Rogers, US Geological Survey, St. John

Review of Terrestrial Research 1956 -2006

Mr. Rafe Boulon, Virgin Islands National Park Service, St. John

12:30 - 2:00 Lunch

2:00 - 3:30 Marine Research Session

Identification of Essential Fish Habitat for Juvenile Groupers in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Dr. Richard Nemeth University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas

Coral Bleaching and Disease Combine to Cause Extensive Mortality on Reefs in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Mr. Jeff Miller Virgin Islands National Park, St. John

3:30 - 4:00 Break

4:00 - 5:30 Terrestrial Research Session

Restoration Ecology, Community Structure and Dynamics, and Conservation Research

on the Rare Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

Dr. Gary Ray Virgin Forest Restorations, St. John

Ecological Studies in the Cinnamon Bay Watershed, Virgin Islands National Park

Dr. Peter Weaver U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Puerto Rico

November 2, Thursday

7:30 - 9:00 Registration Open

9:00 - 10:30 Terrestrial Research

Blood Parasites of Crested Anoles on St. John

Dr. John Stuht Wildlife Biologist, Michigan

Observations on Parasitism and the Biology of White-tailed Deer on St. John

Dr. John Stuht Wildlife Biologist, Michigan

Microbial Pressures Within and Surrounding the Nests of Termites (Nasutitermes acajutlae)

and the Evolution of Arboreal Nesting Behavior

Ms. Marielle Postava-Davigon Northeastern University

Remotely Delivered Immunocontraception in Free-Roaming Feral Burros (Equus Asinus)

Dr. John Turner Medical University of Ohio, Ohio

10:30 - 11:00 Break

11:00 - 12:30 Marine Research Session

Comparison of Cortisol-Indexed Stress Levels in Parrotfishes Inhabiting Developed vs.

Undeveloped Bays on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

Dr. John Turner Medical University of Ohio, Ohio

Trends in Reef Fish Assemblages and Habitat Utilization Patterns:

Past and Current Status within the Virgin Islands National Park and

Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument

Dr. Mark Monaco NOAA/NOS National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, Maryland

Patterns of Infestation of Fish by Parasitic Gnathiid Isopods and Monogeneans in the Virgin Islands

Dr. Paul Sikkel Murray State University, Kentucky

12:30 - 2:00 Lunch

2:00 - 3:30 Marine Research Session

Decadal-scale Monitoring of the Coral Reefs in Lameshur Bay, St. John:

Patterns of Change, Causal Processes, and Likely Outcomes

Dr. Peter Edmunds California State University, Northridge

Restoration of Wetlands at Lameshur Bay, Virgin Islands National Park

Dr. Barry Devine University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas

3:30 - 4:00 Break

4:00 - 5:00 Open Discussion

Moderator: Rafe Boulon

5:00 - 5:30 Closing Remarks

November 3, Friday

10:30 - 11:00 Dedication of Waterside Laboratory

11:00 - 11:30 Dedication of the Project Tektite Underwater Habitat Museum

11:30 - 12:00 VIERS 40^th Anniversary Recognition

12:00 - 2:00 Luncheon at VIERS