OVUM Second Annual Meeting

We are pleased to announce the second annual meeting of OVUM, the Ohio
(River) Valley Unified Malacologists. OVUM is open to all individuals
engaged in any kind of work with or pursuit of mollusks. OVUM has no dues,
officers, abstract requirements, or publications. The meeting is open to
professionals, amateurs and students – basically anybody with interest in
any kind of mollusks (snails & slugs, bivalves of all types, octopi,
squid, etc). Our first meeting took place last year at the Carnegie Museum
of Natural History in Pittsburgh.

OVUM is a one-day meeting, which will be held at Cincinnati Museum
Center’s Geier and Collections Research Center, located near downtown
Cincinnati, Ohio. We will convene on Saturday, October 25th, 2008, from
10:00 AM until the last presentation (to end at 5:00 PM at the latest).
Light refreshments such as fruit, bagels, coffee, tea, and water will be
available from 9-10:00 AM.

Presentations should be limited to 15 minutes. A computer (Windows-based)
and a digital projector will be available for presentations. Presentations
are encouraged from amateurs, professionals, and students. The
presentations are informal and can cover any topic relating to mollusks.
Current research, a recent collecting trip, or an interesting specimen or
observations are all suitable topics for presentations. You can notify us
ahead of the meeting or on the morning of the meeting if you would like to
speak on some topic. It is not required to submit an abstract before the
date of the meeting. Presentations in the format of PowerPoint files are
highly encouraged.
At noon, we will break for lunch. There are several casual restaurants
within a short distance of Geier Center, and transportation can be
arranged. Information on local hotels and directions to Geier Center can
be obtained from Francisco J. Borrero ([log in to unmask],
513-368-6515).

The collection of mollusks at Cincinnati Museum Center will be available
for interested individuals after the presentations are concluded. The
collection is not yet fully organized or catalogued, but includes abundant
and important material, most notably freshwater mussels from the
Midwestern USA and beyond, as well as terrestrial gastropods, and marine
snails and bivalves. Please contact Francisco J. Borrero
([log in to unmask]) in advance if you are interested in using the
collection.

For those interested, a field trip to the Edge of Appalachia Preserve in
Adams County, Ohio (~2 hour drive) can be arranged for Sunday, October
26th. Localities available will be suitable to individuals interested in
both land snails and freshwater mussels. Please express interest on this
field trip before the meeting, by contacting F.J.Borrero, as well as for
any other questions regarding the meeting.
We look forward to seeing you in Cincinnati in October!


Regards,
Charlie
.................................................
Charlie Sturm
Research Associate - Section of Mollusks
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Assistant Professor - Family Medicine
Fellow-American Academy of Family Practice
Fellow-Academy of Wilderness Medicine

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