NARRABRI 2010 - AN INVITATION

The Annual Meeting of the Australasian Society for the Study of Animal Behaviour will be hosted by Dr Mary Whitehouse (CSIRO Entomology) and team at the Australian Cotton Research Institute in Narrabri, NSW, from 6 - 10 April 2010.




The Crossing theatre


The venue for ASSAB 2010 will be The Crossing Theatre in Narrabri. Conference organisation is underway and we will use this website to keep you updated with new information as it comes to hand. We anticipate that the first call for abstracts will be October 1, 2009. Registration will also open at this time. The Narrabri shire is located in the Namoi Valley in North West NSW and renowned for its high quality wheat, cotton, lamb and beef. However, there is also a rich faunal biodiversity (see slide show above - requires Flash player), and we would like to invite you here to see for yourself. Read more about the host "city" and its surrounds below. Please see the Program page for information about possible excursions.

       We have three confirmed plenary speakers. Links to their websites are available by clicking on each photo (see right). Prof Mark Elgar is at The University of Melbourne and his research interests focus on the evolutionary significance of social and mating behaviour in terrestrial invertebrates, especially sexual conflict. Prof Peter Gregg is Chief Scientist of the Cotton Catchment Communities CRC and Professor at the University of New England. He has conducted extensive research on the chemical ecology of insect pests as well as insect migration. A/Prof Martin Whiting will be joining Macquarie University from the University of Witwatersrand (Sth Africa) late in 2009. Martin's interests include reptile conservation biology and sexual selection, animal signalling and constraints to signal development.

We look forward to seeing you in Narrabri in April 2010!

 

NARRABRI

Narrabri is a prosperous, modern country town servicing a large and highly productive agricultural district - (location map) . The Narrabri Shire covers 13,000 km, and is in the heart of the rich Namoi Valley in north western NSW. Narrabri is a strong service and transport centre for the wheat, cotton, and livestock industries of the district and is easily located six hours from both Sydney and Brisbane, where the Newell and Kamilaroi Highways meet.

Narrabri is the headquarters for two major agricultural research stations, the Australian Cotton Research Institute and the IA Watson Grains Research Centre.

The Narrabri district has become an increasingly popular tourist centre because of its proximity to the Mount Kaputar National Park, the Pilliga Forest, the CSIRO Australia Telescope, involvement in and showcasing of the cotton industry through the Australian Cotton Centre, and other rural attractions of the district. Tourism plays a significant role in Narrabri's economy, with an average of 30,000 tourists annually.

For more information about Narrabri and its surrounds visit: www.narrabri.nsw.gov.au


Plenary Speakers

Prof. Mark Elgar
University of Melbourne

Prof. Peter Gregg
Cotton Catchment Communities CRC & University of New England

A/Prof. Martin Whiting
University of Witwatersrand
& Macquarie University

Last update: March 29, 2010