Poster Presentation
Sep. 3rd, 2019 11:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ashetlandpony3 September 1989
This was actually the fourth meeting that I'd attended on the subject of otters. My first otter research workshop was at the Florida State Museum in Gainesville in March, 1980, the second was a Sea Otter Symposium in Arroyo Grande, California, in January, 1981, and the third was the IV. International Otter Colloquium at U.C. Santa Cruz in August, 1985.
At the first two, although I had studied animal behavior as an undergraduate and had been active in otter conservation in the years following, I attended those meetings not as a professional but more as just a 'fan' of otters. At the time of the Santa Cruz colloquium, I had been observing the otters at Trinidad Bay for a couple of summers already, and although I gave a brief slide presentation at the IV. IOC, I was still just a layman.
At the Hankensbüttel meeting, however, I now had an academic affiliation, and was formally studying my otters as a masters thesis project, which meant I had actual professional standing in the field. So, despite being my fourth meeting on otters, this was the first time I would be presenting real findings to a meeting of my peers.
As a consequence of all my past experiences, though, I really felt in my element here. I truly relished these getogethers! There was nothing I enjoyed more than being around dozens of other people whose working lives were also centered around otters. It was the best company and the best fun I could imagine, and here, finally, I had some really important work of my own to share.
"My card."
Now it was time to set up my poster presentation. I wasn't scheduled to give an actual paper at the conference, so this (along with my video) was going to be the only way of presenting my findings here. Everything had to be perfect, and I was very pleased with how my poster turned out.
Click image above to enlarge.
Annnnd...voilà!
The rest of today was spent touring the grounds of the Otter Centre, and the research facility which was not open to the public. I was really amazed at how popular the place was. During the summer, they typically got over 1,000 visitors a day!
This was actually the fourth meeting that I'd attended on the subject of otters. My first otter research workshop was at the Florida State Museum in Gainesville in March, 1980, the second was a Sea Otter Symposium in Arroyo Grande, California, in January, 1981, and the third was the IV. International Otter Colloquium at U.C. Santa Cruz in August, 1985.
At the first two, although I had studied animal behavior as an undergraduate and had been active in otter conservation in the years following, I attended those meetings not as a professional but more as just a 'fan' of otters. At the time of the Santa Cruz colloquium, I had been observing the otters at Trinidad Bay for a couple of summers already, and although I gave a brief slide presentation at the IV. IOC, I was still just a layman.
At the Hankensbüttel meeting, however, I now had an academic affiliation, and was formally studying my otters as a masters thesis project, which meant I had actual professional standing in the field. So, despite being my fourth meeting on otters, this was the first time I would be presenting real findings to a meeting of my peers.
As a consequence of all my past experiences, though, I really felt in my element here. I truly relished these getogethers! There was nothing I enjoyed more than being around dozens of other people whose working lives were also centered around otters. It was the best company and the best fun I could imagine, and here, finally, I had some really important work of my own to share.
"My card."
Now it was time to set up my poster presentation. I wasn't scheduled to give an actual paper at the conference, so this (along with my video) was going to be the only way of presenting my findings here. Everything had to be perfect, and I was very pleased with how my poster turned out.
Click image above to enlarge.
Annnnd...voilà!
The rest of today was spent touring the grounds of the Otter Centre, and the research facility which was not open to the public. I was really amazed at how popular the place was. During the summer, they typically got over 1,000 visitors a day!
