Avian parasitology on a migratory flyway

Tel-Hai College is pleased to  invite you to a six-day intensive field course that will take place in a major migratory flyway Course dates: 3-8 November 2019 Location: Tel-Hai College and the Hula Research Center

   

   Late Application and waiting list – now open:

   based on vacancy spots – first come first serve 

     Faculty:  Dr. Amanda Hund, Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Minnesota, USA. Dr. Hund research aim is to understand how interactions between hosts and parasites can shape patterns across spatial scales, from variation between individuals to changing patterns across populations. Her research spans the fields of evolution, behavioral ecology, and parasitology. She currently works with several study systems, including barn swallows, pacific swallows, stickleback, and soon butterflies. see link to learn more about Amanda's research and teaching - https://amandahund.weebly.com/ Dr. Alfonso Rojas Mora, Laboratory of Ecology and Epidemiology of Parasites, Biology Institute, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland – Dr. Rojas interests are the evolution of behavioral and ecological traits. From a physiological perspective, he aims to understand the proximate reasons why species have particular life history traits and/or behaviors. Specifically, he is interested in physiological and ecological processes that regulate the expression of different life history stages, and the evolution of such mechanisms. His current research focuses on the relation between parasites and physiological and behavioral process such as stopover behavior Dr. Yoni Vortman, Hula Research Center, Department of Animal Sciences, Tel-Hai College, Israel – Dr. Vortman research focuses on field behavioral ecology. He examines how sexual selection, navigation and migration facilitate speciation in avian species. To learn more on Tel-Hai's Hula Research Center and Vortman's research, see link: https://researchagmon.wixsite.com/website/tel-hai-research-center Guest lecture Dr. Arne Hegemann, Department of Biology, Lund University, Sweden Arne’s research integrates physiology, ecology and behaviour throughout the annual-cycle in (migratory) animals. In particular, he is interested in how immune function shapes the ecology and behaviour of birds and fish. See link for more information https://www.biology.lu.se/arne-hegemann    Workshop Overview This course aims to introduce and review major topics related to avian parasitology, migration, and breeding biology. It will take place in the Hula Valley of Israel, an internationally acclaimed location for bird-watching, and an important migratory  stopover point for millions of migratory birds from the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and Asia. This intensive week-long field course will bring together multiple topics in an integrative and comparative framework, including parasitology, migratory ecology, behavioral ecology, and ornithology. It will involve both active classroom work that will focus on primary literature and case studies to cover relevant background and theory, as well as hands-on lab and field skills. Students will be exposed to field and lab methods that allow for the identification and quantification of avian parasites, and the characterization of avian morphology, physiology, immunity, and behavior. This course is a good fit for early graduate students who are interested in pursuing field projects, and for more advanced graduate students who wish to deepen their understanding of avian migration and parasitology.  

Course Schedule

  Eligibility The workshop is intended for graduate students, postdocs, research scientists and industry representatives. * The course will be taught in English. Credits from Tel Hai: 3 academic credit points

• Students can obtain credit points subject to the home institution approval.

    Application instructions To apply, please fill the application form.  No fees are due until you are accepted into the workshop.

application form

   Payment

Course fee	$650 USD
Housing: limited number of rooms available	180 NIS (per night/per person)

• Travel is separate (travel grants available). 

   Cancellation policy Standard one: “Cancellation of participation up to one month prior to the first day of the workshop – 100% refund, (less bank transfer/credit card fees and application fees). Cancellation of participation up to two weeks prior to the first day of the workshop – 70% refund (less bank transfer/credit card fees and application fees) Cancellation of participation less than two weeks prior to the first day of the workshop – no refund.”   Please note that the cancellation notice should be submitted in writing to [email protected]  and approved by email by the workshop team. Registration and payment – relevant link will be sent to the applicants by email. Hula Valley Research Center  Tel-Hai College Virtual Tour