ssar2015

Curator Emeritus Bill Duellman's book on the history of herpetology at the University of Kansas is now available. From the back cover "The University of Kansas has long been recognized as having one of the world's leading centers for research and education in herpetology. This book chronicles the people - faculty and student alike - who have contributed to maintaining and expanding KU's herpetology program and details their lives, education, research, and fieldwork. The book also describes how a true institutional program, one that transcends individuals, was created and sustained over such a long period through innovative planning and social development. The KU herpetological collections comprise one of the largest and most comprehensive museums of amphibians and reptiles in existence, now numbering in excess of 332,000 alcohol-preserved specimens, together with ancillary collections of osteological preparations, color images, frozen tissues, audio recordings, and the associated scientific literature. This book provides an insider's in depth review of the many successes as well as plans that went awry or even courted disaster. Altogether this book represents a substantial and critical chapter in the history of the discipline of herpetology."

Still looking for a place to stay for the SSAR 2015 meetings in Lawrence? We still have space in the dormitories at prices ranging from $40-60 per person per night. All dormitory rooms must be reserved at least one week prior to the start of the meeting and will not be available for walk-ups. Because we have already sent out notices for room-mate preferences, we also may not be able to accommodate matches with preferred room-mates for late sign-ups. If you did not sign up for dormitory lodging at the time of registration you can still add a reservation to your registration by contacting the registration professionals available at (785) 864-5823 or toll free (877) 404-5823. Some photographs of the dormitory might give you a better idea of what life there will be like.

The lounge on the first level of the GSP dormitory.	Entraceway to the dormitory rooms at GSP.
Double room in the GSP dormitory. Bedding will be provided to all attendees to sign up for a dormitory bed.	Shared bathroom in the GSP dormitory. Private baths are not available for guests in the dormitories.
Shared bathrooms in the GSP dormitory have private shower stalls.	Breakfast is included in the price of dormitory rooms and will be served in the "North College Cafe" dining area on the ground level of the GSP dormitory.
View from the porch of the GSP dormitory. The tall building in the background is the Oread Hotel, which will host numerous meeting events. The Kansas Union is just beyond the Oread. All meeting venues are a short walk from the dormitory.	View from the porch of the dormitory looking back toward downtown Lawrence. The large buildings in the middle of this frame are in downtown Lawrence.

The Agenda for SSAR 2015 is now available in PDF format. The agenda includes information on scheduling for all of the conference's major events. Detailed schedule for oral talks will be posted shortly.

We are pleased to announce that all attendees of SSAR 2015 will receive an 11-by-15–inch commemorative poster featuring a spectacular new watercolor of a male collared lizard by natural history artist David M. Dennis. Dennis's artwork is well-known to herpetologists and has been reproduced in many books including Bill Duellman's "Hylid Frogs of Middle America." The posters are high quality printings on card stock and are laminated for durability. Posters will be available at registration and throughout the meeting to all registered attendees.

The May 15 deadline for submitting titles and abstracts for oral presentations and posters for SSAR 2015 is now only one week away!  We have already received a large number of submissions, so be sure to submit as soon as possible to ensure that we don't run out of space for your presentation. If you are a student, we encourage you to consider signing up for one of the student presentation competitions sponsored by SSAR. The option to join these competitions is available via the abstract submission portal.

The previously scheduled tours of the eastern Kansas field sites of legendary snake ecologist Henry Fitch on the afternoon of Thursday, July 30 have already filled to capacity. We were pleased with the outpouring of enthusiasm for this very special SSAR 2015 event and are now pleased to announce that George Pisani has agreed to open up four additional Fitch Reserve tour time slots at 9:00 and 2:00 pm, on both Friday and Saturday; with transportation provided from the meeting venue. Sign up now by contacting the conference organizers via e-mail (ssar2015@ku.edu)!

We are still early in the registration process, but space in all of our tours and field trips is filling quickly. We are offering tours of KU Herpetology and a field trip to the Henry Fitch Natural HIstory Reserve on the afternoon of the meetings' first day (Thursday, July 30th) and a tour of Allen Press on the day after the meeting (Monday, August 3rd). Capacity for all of these trips is limited due to space and transportation issue, and all of them are already at least half full. Be sure to sign up soon if you want to go on a tour or field trip! You can book a spot in any on of these trips or tours at the time of registration. If you are already registered and would like to book a spot on one of the trips please contact the conference coordinators via e-mail (ssar2015@ku.edu).

SSAR 2015 will close with an outdoor picnic in a field directly behind the main meeting venue and adjacent to KU's football stadium. This location is beautiful and centrally located. In addition to easy access to the main meeting venue and nearby lodging (e.g., The Oread Hotel and the GSP Dormitories), the picnic location also features several turtle ponds and a small forested area. The price of a picnic ticket will get you admission to the picnic tents as well as two drink tickets and a full buffet. The picnic option is very popular among early registrants, so we urge everyone to get a ticket while you still can. Due the events popularity and the need to confirm total attendance prior to the day of the event, picnic tickets must be purchased in advance (ideally at the time of registration) and will not be available on-site after the meeting begins.

We previously noted that any students are eligible for the student member rate ($160) so long as they are a member of one of the three major North American herpetological societies (SSAR, HL, ASIH), or any other international, national, or regional herpetological society. We also previously noted that we would require written documentation of such membership. However, we have now eliminated the requirement that students provide this written documentation. We trust you. If you are a student and a member of any herpetological society you are welcome to register at the student member rate without the need to provide written documentation. We reserve the right to later confirm membership and provide registrants with renewal reminders where appropriate.