SEB@SALZBURG - The Society for Experimental Biology

Travel Grants
International Congress “Flow Sensing in
Air and Water”
The International Congress on “Flow Sensing in Air and
Water” bought together scientist from all over the globe who
are interested in how animals sense the movement of fluids.
Areas of interest ranged from the lateral line system in fish, to
air flow sensing hairs in insects, passing by flow sensing in
such diverse animals such as bats and leeches on the way.
The meeting was held in the historic Poppelsdorf Castle in
Bonn, the home of the Institute for Zoology of Bonn
University.
For me attending the represented a unique opportunity for me
at an important time in my scientific career. This conference
was the first specifically focused on flow sensing in air and
water and bought together many of the top researchers from a
number of fields. The conference was an opportunity for me
to present a summary of the work I have done over the last
few years as a postdoc and during my PhD, looking at how
blind cave fish can use the water flow fields around their body
to get hydrodynamic images of their surroundings.
Over the course of the conference I was able to share my
research with experts from a wide range of fields including
animal behaviour, neuronal processing, biophysics and
141st Annual Meeting of the American
Fisheries Society
In September 2011 with funding help from a CoB travel grant I
attended the 141st Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries
Society in Seattle. It was a huge meeting, with over 4000
attendees, but the organisation of the programme into
numerous specialist symposia and the layout of the
conference with multiple smaller rooms and lecture theatres
prevented things getting too overwhelming. I presented work
carried out by a colleague at Leeds University who with
funding from the World Universities Network compared the
morphology of signal crayfish between their native and
invasive ranges. Signal crayfish are native to the Pacific
Northwest, yet among researchers in the region there is some
debate over their true native range, historic movements and
even taxonomy. One talk outlined evidence for division of
signal crayfish into 3 sub-species based on both morphology
and genetic evidence, which could have implications for
management and conservation of signals in the Pacific
Northwest. Elsewhere in the U.S. they have been introduced
outside their native range by human actions with potentially
deleterious consequences; two studies addressed ecosystem
implications of signal crayfish both in lakes and streams. The
notion of 'biotic resistance' was also examined in relation to
signal crayfish, which as voracious consumers of New
Zealand Mud Snail could keep populations of this other
aquatic invader in check.
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artificial sensors. Discussing my work with people with such
diverse interests allowed me to obtain a number of very useful
insights into my own work. During the conference I was also
treated to many fascinating talks from all of these areas. In
was very interesting to see how much can be learnt about
complex biological systems by bringing together methods and
perspectives from a wide range of fields. In addition to
discussing my previous work, the meeting was a fantastic
opportunity to ponder ideas for the next step in my research
career. During the conference it came to light that the
organisers had searched for anyone working on air flow
sensing in birds and drawn a blank. This happens to be one
of the areas of research I am interested in pursuing next, so the
conference was the perfect opportunity to discuss how to
approach this area of neglected but possibly highly
enlightening research.
Overall, attending the International Congress on “Flow
Sensing in Air and Water” gave me the opportunity to share
my research with a unique group of experts which gave me a
number of useful insights and also allowed me to explore the
options for the next stage of my career. And as such I would
like to thank the Society for Experimental Biology and the
Company of Biologists for helping to fund my attendance at
this wonderful congress.
Shane Windsor
University of Oxford
The issue of invasive species was addressed in a number of
symposia, and is a major issue across US fisheries, particularly
considering the vast scale of their freshwater systems and
difficulties in making legislation consistent between different
States. Riverine connectivity was another key theme.
Improving passage for anadromous and catadromous fish over
barriers ranging from culverts to large hydroelectric dams is
hugely important considering the size and commercial
importance of these fisheries in the US pacific region e.g.
Salmon. However, improving connectivity may also have a
downside in enabling faster movement of invasive species
through catchments. Options such as selective barriers based
on differences in movement and behaviour or morphology
were discussed, although most are very expensive so there is
difficult balance to find.
There was a large trade show included within the meeting and
numerous socials which provided enjoyable opportunities to
chat with other researchers informally. We were treated to a
special party in the Seattle Aquarium and a trip up the iconic
Space Needle. I picked up some useful tips and ideas for
future work, and made a point of attending the careers fair.
Although like the UK, the US is suffering large budget cuts in
funding, it was encouraging to find that positions are still
available and there are viable employment routes available for
non-US citizens.
Paula Rosewarne
University of Leeds
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Society For Experimental Biology Bulletin October 2011