THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY
OF AMERICA NEWSLETTER
SOUTHEASTERN CHAPTER
April 1999, Issue 99-2
Contents:
Chapter Officers
Greetings from the Chair
Notes on Southeast Chapter Business Meeting in Wilmington, NC
ESA Meeting in Spokane
Odum Award Best Student Paper
Funding of Odum Award
Join the Southeast Chapter of ESA LISTSERVER
Comments from Secretary
Chapter Officers:
Chair: Ken McLeod (1998-2000)
McLeod@srel.edu
Vice-Chair: Mark Mackenzie (1997-1999)
mackenzi@forestry.auburn.edu
Vice-Chair (elect): Scott Franklin (1999-2001)
sfrankli@memphis.edu
Secretary/Treasurer: Jerry C. Ritchie (1998-2000)
jritchie@hydrolab.arsusda.gov
Chapter's Web site: http://www.auburn.edu/seesa/
Greetings from the Chair
There are two issues that I bring to the attention of the membership in this newsletter. First,
the activity level of the Chapter is declining. The Fall field trip was the first victim of the
decline, as we have not sponsored a trip in many years. Next, we have experienced a decline in
the interest to sponsor symposia at the ASB meeting. The interest in field trips and symposia
are generated by the general membership, not by the officers. We can make arrangements for
field trips but if no one comes, it doesn't happen. For next year's ASB meeting in Chattanooga,
we already have an expressed interest in sponsoring a symposium and a request to arrange a field
trip for the Wednesday preceding the meeting. Please plan now to spend an extra day at ASB to
support this field trip. Bring yourself and your students and spend a day in the field with
your fellow ecologists. If you have additional interest or comments, please send them to Dr.
Scott Franklin, as he will be responsible for these activities. Second, we must support the
Odum Award with our financial contributions. The Award fund is not financially self-sustaining.
With 600 members, donations of only $10 to $20 per member would provide sufficient principal to
finance the award from the annual interest. Surely all of us can afford this small amount to
continue this outstanding award for graduate student excellence.
Ken McLeod, Chair SEC/ESA
Notes on Southeast Chapter Business Meeting in Wilmington, NC
Between 25 and 30 Southeast Chapter members met for the annual business meeting of Chapter at
the annual meeting of the Association of Southeastern Biologists in Wilmington, NC on April 16,
1999. Dr. Scott Franklin of the University of Memphis was elected Vice-Chair for 1999-2001.
Scott will officially take office at the annual meeting of the ESA in Spokane. The Chapter
voted to cosponsor a conference on "Sustainability of wetlands and water resources: how well
can riverine wetlands continue to support society into the 21st century" to be held in Oxford,
Mississippi on May 23-25, 2000. The Chapter will sponsor a symposium at the Association of
Southeastern Biologist Meeting in Chattanooga, TN in 2000 and also plans to offer a field trip
in conjunction with that meeting.
ESA Meeting in Spokane
The Chapter will hold an informal meeting in Spokane at the Annual Meeting of the ESA. Be sure
to visit our Web page (http://www.auburn.edu/seesa/) for the latest information on the time and
place of the Chapter meeting in Spokane.
Odum Award Best Student Paper
The 1999 Odum Award from the Southeast Chapter of the Ecological Society for the best paper
presented by a student at the Annual Meeting of the Association of Southeastern Biologist was
presented to Travis J. Ryan. Mr. Ryan, a native of North Carolina, is completing his Ph.D. at
the University of Missouri under Dr. Ray Semlitsch. Presently he is working at the Savannah
River Ecology Lab with his co-major advisor, Dr. Whitfield Gibbons. He received his B.S. and
M.S. from Western Carolina University. The title of his presentation at the 1999 ASB Meeting
was "Growth, metamorphosis, and maturation in a salamander (Ambystoma talpoideum) with a
life cycle polymorphism" by Travis J. Ryan and Raymond D Semlitsch.
An Honorable Mention was awarded to Rebecca L. Brown at the University of North Carolina,
Chapel Hill working with Dr. Robert Peet for her paper on "Species richness of native and exotic
plants in southern Appalachian riparian zones".
Funding of Odum Award
Currently there are $4500 available to fund the Odum Award. Interest from this fund does not
cover the cost of the award each year. Therefore, the Chapter is slowly using the principal.
We need to increase the principal. There are currently more than 600 members of the Chapter.
We are asking each member (and other interested ESA members) to contribute $10 to $20 to the
Odum Award Fund. This would provide the principal necessary to produce enough income to cover
the cost of the award each year. Contributions should be earmarked for the Southeast Chapter
of ESA's Odum Award Fund and sent to the National Office of the ESA at:
Attn: Accounting
Ecological Society of America
2010 Massachusetts Avenue, Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20036
Join the Southeast Chapter of ESA LISTSERVER
In conjunction with the Chapter Web page, Mark MacKenzie has set up a ListServer to let you know
each time the Web page is updated. To join the ListServer send a message to
majordomo@mail.auburn.edu with the following
command in the body of your email message:
subscribe scesa
Comments from Secretary
Use the Southeast Chapter of ESA Web Site
(http://www.auburn.edu/seesa/) to keep abreast of
Chapter News and events. The Web site is updated with any breaking news. If you have News or an
announcement send them to Mark Mackenzie
(mackenzi@forestry.auburn.edu) who updates
the Web site. Send the officers any comments or concerns you have.
Jerry C. Ritchie, Newsletter Editor
Jerry C. Ritchie, Editor
ESA Southeastern Chapter Newsletter
USDA ARS Hydrology Laboratory
BARC-West Bldg-007
Beltsville, MD 20705
Phone 301-504-8717 Fax 301-504-8931
Email: jritchie@hydrolab.arsusda.gov
HTML text created Friday, April 30, 1999 by Mark D. MacKenzie