1995 BOG agenda/report

1. Call to order

2. Distribution of late reports or additions to reports

3. Messages of regret from absentee governors

4. Call for motion to approve minutes of 1994 meeting of Board of Governorsas published in Copeia 1994 (4): 1079-1116

5. Announcement of appointment of Resolutions Committee

6. Announcement of appointment of Stoye and Storer Award judges

7. Future annual meetings

REPORTS

8. TREASURER Page 1

9. SECRETARY Page 1

10. PUBLICATIONS SECRETARY Page 3

11. COPEIA MANAGING EDITOR Page 5

12. NOMINATING COMMITTEE Page 7

13. LONG RANGE PLANNING AND FINANCE COMMITTEE Page 12

14. TIME, PLACE AND PROGRAM COMMITTEE Page 13

15. ENDOWMENT FUND COMMITTEE Page 13

16. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE Page 14 17. ICHTHYOLOGICAL AND HERPETOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS COMMITTEEPage 15

18. RANEY AWARD COMMITTEE Page 17

19. GAIGE AWARD COMMITTEE Page 18

20. ROBERT H. GIBBS, JR. MEMORIAL AWARD COMMITTEE Page 19

21. HERPETOLOGICAL INFORMATION COORDINATOR Page 19

22. ICHTHYOLOGICAL INFORMATION COORDINATOR Page 20

23. JOINT ASIH-AFS COMMITTEE ON NAMES OF FISHES Page 20

24. PUBLICATIONS POLICY COMMITTEE Page 21

25. COMMITTEE ON GRADUATE STUDENT PARTICIPATION Page 22

26. COMMITTEE ON SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS Page 24

27. SOCIETY HISTORIAN Page 25

28. REPRESENTATIVE TO AAAS Page 26

29. REPRESENTATIVE TO ASSOCIATION OF SYSTEMATICS COLLECTIONS Page 26

30. REPRESENTATIVE TO AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY Page 26

31. REPRESENTATIVE TO EARLY LIFE HISTORY SECTION OF AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY Page 28

32. REPRESENTATIVE TO THE IUCN Page 28

33. REPRESENTATIVE TO SOCIETY FOR STUDY OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES AND HERPETOLOGISTS LEAGUE Page 31

34. REPRESENTATIVE TO AMERICAN ELASMOBRANCH SOCIETY Page 32

35. REPRESENTATIVE TO FISH BEHAVIOR GROUP OF ANIMAL BEHAVIOR SOCIETY Page 32

36. REPRESENTATIVE TO SOCIETY FOR PRESERVATION OF NATURAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS Page 34 37. REPRESENTATIVE TO THE NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SERVICE Page 38

38. MEETING LOCAL COMMITTEE Page 39

39. SOUTHEASTERN DIVISION Page 39

Appendix 1. Attachments to the Report of the Treasurer Page 41

Appendix 2. Attachment to the Report of the Long Range Planning and Finance Committee Page 42

Appendix 3. Attachment to the Report of the Representative to the American Fisheries Society Page 43

40. Call for blanket approval of Board of Governors Agenda items, exempting those removed by BOG members for discussion

41. Discussion of Old and New Business

42. Election of Gibbs Award Committee

43. Call for nominations for election to the Nominating Committee

44. Request for volunteer to serve as ASIH Representative to AAAS

45. Adjournment

8. TREASURER

Submitted by Lawrence M. Page

The enclosed report on the finances of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists is based on audited financial statements for 1994 received from Clifton, Gunderson & Co., Certified Public Accountants & Consultants, Champaign, Illinois.

As the report indicates, ASIH remains in good financial condition. Total assets of the society stood at $538,074 on 31 December 1994 compared to $442,144 at the end of 1993, $401,867 at the end of 1992, $366,142 at the end of 1991, and $336, 035 at the end of 1990. The 1994 level represents a 22 percent increase over 1993, the 1993 level was a 10 percent increase over 1992, and the 1992 level was a 10 percent increase over 1991. The steady increase in assets over the last three years is attributable primarily to the dues increase initiated in 1991. The larger increase in 1994 derives from a large attendance (and, therefore, large revenue) at the 1993 Annual Meeting, donations to the Endowment Fund, returns on investments, and the lower cost of printing Copeia.

For the 1994 calendar year, overall revenue exceeded overall expenses by $103,038. Total revenue generated in 1994 was $297,325, compared to $244,884 in 1993, $253,580 in 1992, $233,154 in 1991, and $137,992 in 1990. Largest sources of income in 1994 were subscriptions ($93,982; down from $103,873 in 1993), memberships ($110,967, up from $99,040 in 1993), page charges ($20,671; cf. $21,415 in 1993), 1993 Annual Meeting ($20,027), and investments ($17,454; cf. $15,411 in 1993). Total expenses for 1994 were $194,287 compared to $215,559 for 1993, $193,670 for 1992, $209,899 for 1991, and $231,875 for 1990.

The Endowment Fund and the Life Membership Fund were established constitutionally in 1993. On 31 December 1994, the Life Membership Fund contained $6,170, invested in Scudder ShortTerm Bond Fund and The Berger 101 Fund. On 31 December 1994, the Endowment Fund contained $15,059, invested in Fidelity Investments Cash Reserves Fund. [As of 22 April 1995, the Endowment Fund contained $18,061 invested in Fidelity Investments Cash Reserves Fund, and the separate "Special Publication Fund" contains $20,293, of which $15,500 has been raised specifically for publication of Collection Building in Ichthyology and Herpetology, to be edited by T. W. Pietsch and W. Anderson, Jr.

Revenues and expenses for 1995 are expected to approximate those for 1994.

SEE ATTACHMENT - APPENDIX 1

9. SECRETARY

Submitted by Dean A. Hendrickson

On January 4, 1995, I drove to Carbondale, Illinois to retrieve the ASIH Business Office files and discuss the operations of the Business Office with outgoing Secretary, Brooks Burr. I was accompanied by the new Business Office Manager, Ms. Sue Rogers. The one-day visit was pleasant and effective for making the transition of the office to Austin. At the time of writing of this report, most mail was still being directed to the old Business Office address and being forwarded by Dr. Burr, but the new address is now in Copeia and on renewal forms to be sent with 95(3). The mail delay, and the large number of membership renewals arriving during the time of the office move, combined with longer than normal data entry delays at Allen Press contributed to an undetermined (but vociferous) number of members failing to receive the 1995(1) issue of Copeia. The backlog was mostly processed prior to mailing of 1995(2), and most who failed to receive 1995(1) on time should have received it by the time this report is submitted.

Electronic mail has proven to be an efficient medium for most Business Office communications, and it also became apparent that many inquiries from members could be easily answered by provision of selected Society files on an easily accessible electronic information service. Toward that end, standard files of the Society, an updated version of the membership directory, meeting information, and other files have been published on Internet on the World Wide Web:

http://www.asih.org/

and gopher:

gopher.utexas.edu; port: 3003; path: 11/pub/asih/textdocs/

The system has not been widely publicized, but has been well received by all who have accessed it. The Secretary's office welcomes suggestions regarding expansion of this service and how the WWW and gopher might be best utilized to serve the needs of members. Contributions from members are also welcomed.

The Business Office has begun to investigate alternatives to the current arrangement with Allen Press for membership database management. The Business Office now processes all dues payments, but Allen Press manages the membership database. The system is inefficient, slow and error prone, and does not lend itself to efficient response by the Business Office to members' inquiries. The Business Office will work with the Executive Committee and Allen Press to revise this system.

The more or less standard data reported by the Secretary's Office, for the period 1 January 1994 - 31 December 1994 (as compiled by the current secretary), is as follows:

As of 31 December 1994, the number of members in the respective categories of the Society's mailing list included 1312 regular, 560 student, 287 foreign, 197 life, 54 associate, 10 sustaining, and 29 honorary foreign members, for an overall total of 2449 members. Overall totals for recent years are:

1984 - 2,217; 1987 - 2,151; 1990 - 2,407; 1993 - 2,410; 1985 - 2,199; 1988 - 2,215; 1991 - 2,442; 1994 - 2,449; 1986 - 2,241; 1989 - 2,325; 1992 - 2,389

[Institutional subscriptions at the end of 1994 were 697 domestic and 391 foreign.]

A letter was sent in May to the 378 delinquent members who had not renewed by the end of April 1994, encouraging them to renew their memberships. This resulted in 144 renewals, 9 cancellations and 125 non-responses.

The total number of Copeia 1994 (4) mailed was 3,527, compared with 3,460, 3,491 and 3,542 for the last (i.e., no. 4) issues of 1993, 1992 and 1991, respectively. Permission was granted on 13 requests to reprint 31 figures published in Copeia, on two requests to make 80 and 72 photocopies each of two Copeia articles for use in formal courses on two campuses. Nineteen requests for Copeia mailing-list rentals were received (either for entire lists or parts of lists) during 1994 for a total income to the Society of $4485. This represents an increase of $1545 over that of 1993. The Society realized a total of $294.71 during 1994 in royalty payments from University Microfilms International, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, resulting from sales of microfilm and microfiche of Copeia. This is $6.75 less than the amount earned in 1993. The total number of herpetological and ichthyological career pamphlets sent out during the year were 284 and 259, respectively.

10. PUBLICATIONS SECRETARY

Submitted by Jose P. Rosado

TOTAL REVENUE

EXPENSES

NET INCOME - $856.90

SUMMARY

Expenses do not include cost pertaining to ASIH publications that were disbursements of the Treasurer's Office (e.g., postage, handling, insurance and storage costs charged by Allen Press.

COMMENTS:

1. Sales Volume (COPEIA Back Issues)

YEAR	#ORDERS	#COPIES	REVENUE	REVENUE/COPY
1982	47	729	2558.00	3.51
1983	84	4953	8981.39	1.81
1984	53	1730	4376.81	2.53
1985	59	562	3395.32	6.04
1986	35	329	1609.60	4.89
1987	53	615	2685.35	4.37
1988	55	294	1556.05	5.29
1989	42	470	2333.92	4.97
1990	110	14558	10440.59	0.72
1991	65	7090	5019.03	0.71
1992	12	83	895.00	10.78
1993	12	131	1639.60	12.52
1994	6	37	815.00	22.20

2. Status of Back Issues INVENTORY

YEAR	1	2	3	4
1981	+	+	+	+
1982	+	+	+	+
1983	+	+	+	+
1984	+	+	+	+
1985	+	+	+	+
1986	+	+	+	+
1987	+	+	+	+
1988	+	0	0	0
1989	0	0	0	0
1990	0	0	0	39
1991	5	+	63	+
1992	+	+	+	39
1993	0	+	+	+
1994	+	+	+	+

3. Sale of Percomorph Phylogeny Bulletin

YEAR	#ORDERS	#COPIES	REVENUE	REV/COPY
1993	11	13	$435.00	$33.46*
1994	5	6	192.00	32.00*

* These figures do not includes sales volume from 1994 meetings.

Present inventory of 106 volumes exist.

11. COPEIA MANAGING EDITOR

Submitted by Michael E. Douglas

The Managing Editor, Michael E. Douglas, reported that, during 1994, 1138 pages of COPEIA were published over four issues: 01 February (262 pages), 16 May (310 pages), 17 August (270 pages),and 19 December (296 pages). These four issues comprised 87 major articles (861 pages or 75%) and 38 shorter contributions (133 pages or 12%). The remaining 13% was distributed as follows: 29 Book Reviews (49 pages), summary of the 1994 annual meeting (38 pages), 1994 index (22 pages), eight obituaries (18 pages), four notes and news (11 pages), three award notices (3 pages), and a list of reviewers (3 pages).

Of the major articles published in COPEIA, 54% were in herpetology (n = 47), while the remaining 46% were in ichthyology (n = 40). Of the shorter contributions, 55% were in ichthyology (n = 21), while 45% (n = 17) were in herpetology. When major articles and shorter contributions were combined, herpetological articles accounted for 51% (n = 67) whereas ichthyological articles comprised 49% (n = 61).

During 1994, 240 manuscripts were submitted to COPEIA, which represents a 10% increase over 1993. Of these, 87% (n = 209) were processed (a 9% increase over 1993). Some 68% of these (n = 142) were submitted from 39 different states of the Union: California (15), Florida (13), Texas (8), Virginia (7), New York (6), Pennsylvania (6), eight states with five, seven with four, five with three, four with two, and nine with one each. The remaining 32% (n = 68) of submissions were received from 32 different countries, distributed as follows: Canada (15), Australia (5), Spain (5), Japan (5), Republic of China (5), Italy (4), Israel (3), United Kingdom (3), Basil (3), Belgium (2), Sweden (2), New Zealand (2), and 11 countries with one submittal each.

Of the 209 articles processed, 18% (n = 38) were allocated to genetics, development, and morphology; 18% (n = 39) to general herpetology; 20% (n = 41) to physiology and physiological ecology; 22% (n = 45) to general ichthyology; and 22% (n = 46) to ecology and ethology. Rejection rates by section were as follows: genetics, development, and morphology, 48%; general herpetology, 48%; general ichthyology, 54%; ecology and ethology, 63%; and physiology/ physiological ecology, 70%. The overall 1994 rejection rate for COPEIA was 57%.

The COPEIA backlog, discussed at both 1993 and 1994 annual meetings, has been successfully resolved in 1994 by a combination of increased pagination in COPEIA 1993, combined with a 25% drop in 1993 submittals when compared to 1992. The decline in submittals may simply reflect a backlash against the backlog, for submittals in 1994 are 10% above 1993 totals. To date, there is no COPEIA backlog. However, it is important to realize that there is a certain time period required for processing/publishing manuscripts. As discussed in the 1994 managing editor's report, Allen Press requires a mandatory six-month, "in-train" period for processing of manuscripts (whether electronic or hard-copy format). This cannot be reduced by COPEIA staff for it reflects Allen Press production time. The COPEIA office also requires a three-month period to edit/compile an issue, and to correct copyediting problems. The latter usually stem from the fact that authors fail to read and/or implement "instructions to authors" (published in the first issue of each volume). An additional two-month period is designated as a safety cushion, to deal with unforeseen editorial problems (this period is required because authors either fail to respond to editorial queries, or only respond differentially). Thus, the managing editor concluded in 1994 that time "in-train" should not be reduced below 11-months. For the last several issues of COPEIA, the maximum time an accepted manuscript has been "in-train" is as follows: 1995(2) 11 months; 1995(3) 11 months; 1995(4) 10.5 months. These times represent a decrease of 15% (i.e., 2 months) from that recorded for the 1994 issue. Thus, the proposed 100-page increase for COPEIA 1995 (petitioned for by the managing editor and approved at the 1994 annual meeting) was not implemented.

With regard to electronic publishing, the positive note provided at the 1994 annual meeting is reemphasized. As an historical note, issues 1994(3) and 1994(4) were submitted to Allen Press on floppy disk, with 80% of typesetting commands imbedded in text. This process has continued to date. Starting with 1996(1), 100% of typesetting commands will be imbedded by the COPEIA copy editor. The delay in executing this final step has been due to Allen Press, which has been slow to provide the necessary WordPerfect macros to execute these tasks.

The issue of how much money is being saved by the society as a result of electronic publishing is as follows. Beginning with 1994(3), Allen Press has provided the society with an electronic publishing discount of $6.50/printed page. The discount results from not requiring 3rd-party individuals to retype all manuscripts into electronic format. Thus, the society saved $1768.00 and $1566.50, respectively (total = $3334.50) for these two issues in 1994. Upon further discussion with Allen Press, the managing and copy editors have now established the discount at $7.50 per printed page. The society is thus entitled to (and will receive) an additional $1.00/page rebate for 1995(1). Savings per page will jump to $8.50 in 1996, when COPEIA imbeds all typesetting commands into each issue.

Using 1995(1) as an example (given that the managing editor has this bill currently in hand), savings are reflected as follows: 272 printed pages at $7.50/page resulting in a total rebate of $2040. It is safe to say that, with 1200 pages (maximum) printed per year and with the current $7.50/page electronic discount, the society will save approximately $9000 in 1995. In 1996, savings will total $10,200. (again, calculated at 1200 pages/year and $8.50/page rebate). Electronic publishing, for all its headaches, has clearly been a financial boon to the society.

12. NOMINATING COMMITTEE

Submitted by Lynne R. Parenti, Chair

The Nominating Committee of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists places the following Society members in nomination for the offices listed below. Information on all candidates is included with this report. A candidate information sheet will also be included in the registration packet so that the general membership may study the ballot information prior to the annual business meeting. Election of the new member of the Gibbs Award Committee takes place at the Board of Governors meeting.

CANDIDATES for 1995

President-elect: Theodore W. Pietsch, University of Washington; E. O. Wiley, University of Kansas.

General Ichthyology Editor, COPEIA: Richard L. Mayden, University of Alabama, Richard P. Vari, National Museum of Natural History.

Robert H. Gibbs Award Committee: Barry Chernoff, Field Museum of Natural History; G. David Johnson, National Museum of Natural History; Scott A. Schaefer, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia.

Board of Governors:

Herpetology: James W. Archie, James P. Bogart, Alan de Queiroz, David Duvall, David M. Green, Harry W. Greene, Linda R. Maxson, Alan H. Savitzky, Jens V. Vindum, David B. Wake.

Ichthyology: William D. Anderson, Jr., Carole C. Baldwin, Henry L. Bart, Jr., William N. Eschmeyer, G. David Johnson, Gene S. Helfman, Douglas F. Markle, Lynne R. Parenti, Edwin P. (Phil) Pister, Mark Westneat.

Submitted by the Nominating Committee - 1 May 1995

Carole C. Baldwin, National Museum of Natural History; Carter Gilbert, Florida Museum of Natural History; Ray Huey, University of Washington; Pat Gregory, University of Victoria; Lynne R. Parenti, National Museum of Natural History, Chair

INFORMATION ON CANDIDATES FOR 1995 PRESIDENT-ELECT

Theodore W. Pietsch, Professor and Curator of Fishes, School of Fisheries and Burke Memorial Washington State Museum, University of Washington, Seattle. Research: Systematics, distribution, zoogeography, functional morphology, and behavior of teleost fishes; history of ichthyology; biotic survey and inventory, Kuril Archipelago. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1977-81; 1983-87; 1994-98); Long-Range Planning and Finance Comm (1977-81); Resolutions Comm (1980-82), Chair (1982); Nominating Comm (1980-81; 1991-92); Chair, Comm on Honorary Foreign Members (1982-83); General Ichthyology Editor, COPEIA (1986-91); Gibbs Award Committee (1991-94), Chair (1994); Faculty Representative, Comm on Graduate Student Participation (1991-present); Chair, Ichthyological and Herpetological Collections Committee, (1992-present); Time, Place, and Program Comm (1993-present).

Edward O. Wiley, Senior Curator, Division of Fishes, Natural History Museum and Professor, Department of Systematics and Ecology, University of Kansas, Lawrence. Research: Systematics and evolution of fishes, theory and practice of systematics and biogeography. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1977-81; 1983-88; 1992-present); Chair, Nominations Comm (1988); Chair, Resolutions Comm (1985); Ichthyological Collections Comm (1976-79).

General Ichthyology Editor, COPEIA

Richard L. Mayden, Associate Professor and Curator, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. Research: Biogeography, systematics and taxonomy of fishes; methods of taxonomic and systematic analysis. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1988-93, 1995-99); Collections and Resources Comm; Electronic Data Standards subcomm (1993-95), Policy and Practices subcomm (1993-95); Common and Scientific Names Comm, Advisor (1993-95); COPEIA Editorial Board (1987-91); Environmental Quality Comm (1993-94); Gibbs Award Comm (1990-93; Chair 1993). Editorial Experience: Editor, Bulletin Alabama Museum of Natural History, University of Alabama, 1987-present; Editor, Systematics, Historical Ecology, and North American Freshwater Fishes, Stanford University Press (1992); COPEIA Editorial Board (1987-91); Advisory board member, Smithsonian Institution Publication Series in Comparative and Evolutionary Biology (1988-95).

Richard P. Vari, Research Scientist and Curator, Division of Fishes, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Research: Systematics, evolution, and zoogeography of South American and African freshwater fishes. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1980-85); Raney Award Comm, Chair (1982-83); Stoye Award judge (1980); co-preparer of Careers in Ichthyology (1991). Editorial Experience: Associate Editor for Vertebrate Zoology, Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington (1982-88); Consulting International Editor for the Bulletin de l'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique (1989-present).

BOARD OF GOVERNORS - HERPETOLOGY

James W. Archie, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, California State University, Long Beach Research: systematics, biogeography, and evolutionary/behavioral ecology of phrynosomatid lizards, particularly the genera Sceloporus and Uta; theoretical basis of phylogenetic inference methods, in particular methods for evaluating quality of various sources of phylogenetic data.

James P. Bogart, Professor, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Ontario Research: evolution and biosystematics of amphibians using behavior, cytogenetics, and molecular approaches. ASIH Service: Long Range Planning and Finance Comm; Stoye Award judge. Alan de Queiroz, Assistant Professor, Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology, and Curator, University Museum, University of Colorado, Boulder. Research: Behavioral and ecological evolution of squamates, especially garter snakes. Phylogeny of trophic specialization and its relationship to specific behavioral and morphological traits; use of behavioral characters in estimating phylogenetic relationships; and methods of phylogenetic analysis.

David Duvall, Associate Professor of Zoology, Department of Life Sciences, Arizona State University West, Phoenix Research: behavior, ecology, evolution and herpetology, specifically snake and lizard mating systems, sexual selection, chemical communication and social structure. ASIH Service: Comm on Graduate Student participation (1988-89), Member and Chair, Gaige Award Comm (1990-91).

David M. Green, Associate Professor of Biology and Curator of Herpetology, Redpath Museum and McGill University. Research: Systematics and evolution of anuran amphibians including molecular genetics, cytogenetics, interpopulational divergence and hybridization. ASIH Service: ASIH symposium co-organizer "Amphibian cytogenetics and evolution" (1989); ASIH symposium co-organizer "Biology of amphibians and reptiles in seasonally cold environments" (1989); Stoye Award judge (1988).

Harry W. Greene, Curator of Herpetology and Professor of Integrative Biology, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720. Research: behavior, ecology, and conservation of vertebrates, especially snakes. ASIH Service: Board of Governors, COPEIA Editorial Board, Nominating Comm, Long Range Planning and Finance Committee, and participation in and organization of symposia at annual meetings.

Linda R. Maxson, Professor of Zoology and Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs, University of Tennessee. Research: Molecular evolutionary biology, specifically using sequence information from proteins and genes to reconstruct evolutionary relationships among living amphibians and reptiles; development of primers for direct sequencing of albumin genes; molecular clocks. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1985-89); ASIH liaison representative to AAAS (1990-92).

Alan H. Savitzky, Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk Research: Morphology, development, and evolution of snakes; ecology and conservation biology of pitvipers. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1982-86; 1990-94); ASIH Representative to HL and SSAR (1987-present); COPEIA Editorial Board (1983-88); Long-Range Planning and Finance Comm (1983-86; 1992-95); Nominating Comm (1984-85; 1991-92; Chair, 1992); Planning Committee for 75th Anniversary of COPEIA (1984-88); Public Affairs Comm (1990-91); Time, Place and Program Comm (1990-92); Stoye Award Judge, General Herpetology (1984, 1986-87; Chair, 1993).

Jens V. Vindum, Collection Manager, Department of Herpetology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco Research: development and management of herpetology collections; development of searchable Gopher database for herpetology collections. ASIH Service: ASIH Local Comm (1989); Curatorial Supplies and Practices Comm.

David B. Wake, Director, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Gompertz Professor of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley. Research: Evolutionary biology of amphibians, with special emphasis on systematics, morphology and conservation biology of salamanders, especially the plethodontids of the American West and the New World tropics. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (2 terms), Vice President for Membership.

BOARD OF GOVERNORS - ICHTHYOLOGY

William D. Anderson, Jr., Professor of Biology and Curator of Fishes, Grice Marine Biological Laboratory, College of Charleston, SC. Research: Systematics of percoid fishes; history of natural history. ASIH Service: COPEIA General Ichthyology Editor (1976-79); COPEIA Editorial Board (1987, 1991-92); Board of Governors (1977-79, ex officio; 1988-92, elected); Comm on Environmental Quality (1979-present); Nominating Comm (1980); Stoye Award Judge for Genetics, Development and Morphology (1982); Time, Place and Program Comm (1987-present); Chairman, Program Subcommittee, ASIH annual meeting (1990); Resolutions Comm (1991, 1994); Advisory subcomm of AFS/ASIH Comm on Names of Fishes (1993-present).

Carole C. Baldwin, Research Assistant, Division of Fishes, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Research: Phylogeny of marine neoteleostean fishes based on cladistic analyses of morphological features of larvae and adults; larval fish taxonomy; ontogeny. ASIH service: Stoye Award judge for General Ichthyology (1994), Nominating Comm (1994-95).

Henry L. Bart, Jr., Director and Curator of Fishes, Tulane University Museum of Natural History. Research: Taxonomy, systematics, and life history evolution in percid fishes and necturid salamanders; streamfish community ecology in the southeastern United States. ASIH Service: Local Comm, ASIH annual meeting (1984); Collections Comm, Supplies and Resources Subcomm (1993-present).

William N. Eschmeyer, Senior Curator, Department of Ichthyology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, Research: Taxonomic databases for fishes ("Genera" published, species nearing completion), information transfer, etc.; systematics of scorpaeniform fishes. ASIH service: Board of Governors (1970-74; 1986-90). Nominating Comm twice, once as chair; Time, Place and Program Comm; Long Range Planning Comm; ASC Representative, Raney Award Comm; Collections Comm; Nomenclature Comm. Local Comm, ASIH meetings 1967, 1989 (co-chair).

G. David Johnson, Curator, Division of Fishes, and Chairman, Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C. 20560. Research: Comparative morphology and higher-level phylogeny of teleostean fishes; ontogeny. ASIH service: Board of Governors (1980-84), Raney Award Comm (1981-83), Stoye Award judge, General Ichthyology (1985, 1989), Organizer, Percomorph Phylogeny Symposium (1990), Classification Comm (1991-present), Stoye Award judge for Genetics, Morphology & Development (1994).

Gene S. Helfman, Associate Professor of Ecology, Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens Research: behavioral and conservation ecology of fishes; predator-prey interactions; applications of behavior to conservation issues. ASIH Service: Raney Award Comm (Chair); Stoye Award judge; Resolutions Committee (Chair); Board of Governors; COPEIA Editorial Board.

Douglas F. Markle, Professor, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis. Research: Fish taxonomy (Oregon freshwater fishes and variety of marine taxa), fish phylogeny, ecology and morphology of early life history stages of fishes. ASIH Service: Local Comm, ASIH annual meeting (1975); Raney Award Comm (1985-89, Chair 1988-89); COPEIA Editorial Board (1987, 1989); Board of Governors (1990-94).

Lynne R. Parenti, Curator, Division of Fishes, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Research: Systematics and historical biogeography of freshwater and coastal Indo-Pacific and Caribbean fishes, especially atherinomorphs and gobioids; higher teleost comparative anatomy and classification. ASIH Service: Stoye Award Judge (1984, 1990, 1992); Editorial Board (1985, 1987); Board of Governors (1986-90); Student Awards Comm. (1985-86); Comm. on Distinguished Fellow (1986); Chair, Stoye Award Poster Comm. (1987); Chair, Storer Award in Ichthyology (1988); Local Comm. ASIH annual meeting (1989); Organizer, session to honor D. E. Rosen (1989); Local Coordinator, Workshop on Biogeography of Neotropical Freshwater Fishes (1989); Gibbs Award Comm (1990-1992, Chair 1992); Co-preparer of Careers in Ichthyology (1991); Chair, Raney Award Comm (1993); Nominating Comm (1993-94, Chair 1995).

Edwin P. (Phil) Pister, Executive Secretary, Desert Fishes Council, Bishop, CA. Research: Conservation of North America's desert aquatic ecosystems and associated life forms; evolutionary biology and conservation of cyprinodont fishes. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1990-94).

Mark Westneat, Assistant Curator of Fishes, Department of Zoology, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago Research: Systematics and evolution of tropical marine fishes, especially family Labridae, functional morphology of vertebrates, quantitative modelling of vertebrate musculoskeletal systems. ASIH Service: Comm on Graduate student participation, Chair (1988-90).

THE ROBERT H. GIBBS MEMORIAL AWARD COMMITTEE

Barry Chernoff, Associate Curator of Fishes and Chairman, Department of Zoology, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago. Research: Systematics, biogeography and functional morphology of North American and neotropical freshwater fishes; morphometrics. ASIH Service: Board of Governors (1984-89); 1991-96); Nominating Comm (1984-86, 1988-89); COPEIA Editorial Board (1984-85); Stoye Award judge (1985, 1987, 1990, 1992); Raney Award Comm (1990); Ad hoc comm on the Nominating Comm (1990-91).

G. David Johnson, Curator, Division of Fishes, and Chairman, Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C. 20560. Research: Comparative morphology and higher-level phylogeny of teleostean fishes; ontogeny. ASIH service: Board of Governors (1980-84), Raney Award Comm (1981-83), Stoye Award judge for General Ichthyology (1985, 1989), Organizer, Percomorph Phylogeny Symposium (1990), Classification Comm (1991-present), Stoye Award judge for Genetics, Morphology & Development (1994).

Scott A. Schaefer, Associate Curator of Ichthyology, and Chairman, Department of Ichthyology, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. Research: Systematics and biogeography of neotropical freshwater fishes; evolutionary morphology. ASIH service: Raney Award Comm (1989-90; Chair, 1990); Stoye Award Judge (1990); Joint Collections Resources Comm (1991).

13. LONG RANGE PLANNING AND FINANCE COMMITTEE

Submitted by Victor H. Hutchison, Chair

The Long Range Planning and Finance Committee (LRPFC) was charged by President Roy McDiarmid to consider one major item: Should ASIH adopt a code of ethics? If ASIH determines that such a code should be drafted, we believe that one much like those of other societies (American Society of Zoologists [in preparation], Animal Behavior Society, Ecological Society of America, etc.) would be appropriate. Adoption of such a code now would let us be proactive, rather than reactive, especially if some future events show that a code of ethics would have saved the Society from harm.

The LRPFC was asked not to draft a final document for consideration, but a proposal for discussion at the meetings of the Executive Committee, Board of Governors and the Membership during the 1995 annual meeting in Edmonton. After consideration the LRPFC decided that opinions and ideas from members should come before a draft document is attempted. We expect that such a proposal will engender much discussion and, perhaps, some general opposition to any written code. After participation from the bodies concerned, the LRPFC can then decide if a code of ethics is needed and develop a draft for consideration at the 1996 meeting.

Although perhaps not known generally by the membership, the ASIH has had a few pastproblems that fell within the guidelines normally covered by codes of ethics. These were mostly within the areas dealing with sexual harassment and publication. The President, usually in consultation with at least some members of the Executive Committee, handled the problem informally with the alleged "offenders."

Although most members of the Society already fall within the "jurisdiction" of policies and rules of their own institutions, granting agencies, other professional organizations, etc., there are currently no stated policies for handling infringements within ASIH. Some ethical guidelines are quite specific and detailed. The Guidelines for Herpetological Collections: The Ethics of Maintenance and Use is a 22-page document. A much more general and succinct document probably could serve our needs. A code similar to those of other societies (ASZ, ESA, etc.) should probably serve as models.

The LRPFC believes that use of a detailed process for handling problems with ethical conduct of a member is unnecessary. Simple referral of such cases to the Executive Committee would likely be sufficient. Final action (if any) and disposition would be left to that body.

A code of ethics, if adopted, should address in a general way the principles that guide professional conduct of members in their activities of training others, research, publication and dissemination of knowledge, and communicating with society at large. Such a code also usually includes items addressing sexual harassment, animal care, discrimination (gender, creed, religion, sexual preference, disability, race, national origin, etc.), publication.

ASIH does not have liability insurance. Thus, actions taken by the Executive Committee against a member for infringement of the code could leave the Society and its officers at some financial risk. Under such actions the officers could be held personally liable. If a code of ethics is adopted, should ASIH seek liability insurance coverage (or should weanyway)?

All members are encouraged to submit additional comments and suggestions to the LRPFC before 15 October 1995. These comments will be compiled, analyzed and passed on to the new LRPFC in January 1996.

SEE ATTACHMENT - APPENDIX 2

14. TIME, PLACE AND PROGRAM COMMITTEE

Submitted by Patrick T. Gregory, Chair

We have received an invitation for ASIH to meet at Pennsylvania State University in 1999. The Local Committee Chair for this meeting would be Jay Stauffer. The TPPC unanimously supports this invitation and recommends its acceptance by the ASIH Board of Governors. We are still working on a meeting site for 1998 and welcome offers to host future meetings.

TPPC Dean Hendrickson, Robert C. Cashner, Theodore W. Pietsch, David Mann, William D. Anderson, Robert J. Lavenberg, Joseph S. Nelson, Joseph C. Mitchell, Sanford A. Moss

15. ENDOWMENT FUND COMMITTEE

Submitted by Marvalee H. Wake, Chair

The Endowment Committee, initially chaired by David Heins and succeeded by Marvalee Wake, has pursued a number of aspects of the establishment of a suitable endowment to facilitate the activities of the Society. The committee last met at the annual meeting in Los Angeles in June, 1994. It discussed investment policy, and effectively decided to review data on the Society's first request for donations from the ASIH membership before proceeding further. Also in June, 1994, a brochure drafted by Jay Savage and printed through the good offices of David Heins was mailed to the entire membership. It described the prospects of a good endowment for implementing a diversity of activities important to the Society and its future, especially the development of students, and it asked that donations to the fund be sent to the ASIH Treasurer. Between 4 June 1944 and 14 February 1995, 103 members of all categories (e. g., student, regular, etc.) made contributions ranging from $10 to $1000, for a total of $18,193.00. Contributors represent 4.3% of the total membership of ASIH. Jay Savage proposed at the Board of Governors' meeting that former Presidents of ASIH establish the endowment fund by contributing $500 (or more). 53% of the 32 colleagues who have held (or are holding or shortly will hold) that office responded with donations, 88% of them for $500 or more (these are included in the total sum donated, and constitute nearly half of the fund). This demonstration of loyalty and commitment is deeply appreciated, as is that of all of the contributors.

The Endowment Committee will continue to ask the membership for donations to the fund, but it recognizes our collective economic reality. Our membership is as subject, if not more so, to all those factors that make contributions difficult, no matter how intellectually committee prospective donors might be. Consequently, the Endowment Committee at its meeting in Edmonton must consider a diversity of strategies. It must establish more realistic short-, but especially longer-range, goals. Until, and only if, the proportion of the membership that contributes to the fund is considerably greater, can industrial and other private concerns be approached. Therefore we must consider other kinds of contributions. Only one response to our request a year ago for suggestions was received from a member; Mark Jennings recommended several innovative possibilities, among them that regional "speakers' bureaus" be established, with our members addressing various local agencies, clubs, societies, etc., for an appropriate cost-shared fee, the proceeds to be contributed to the ASIH Endowment Fund.

The Endowment Committee will consider any feasible means of increasing the Endowment Fund, and ways to implement them. We welcome all suggestions. At the same time, we will develop longer-range growth policies for the fund as it accumulates. We seek the endorsement of the Society to continue these efforts, which we believe will contribute constructively to the future of ASIH.

16. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE

Submitted by Walter R. Courtenay, Jr., Chair

Changes in the political landscape, like earthquakes and effects of hurricanes, are felt by species other than Homo sapiens. This committee has been asked to provide commentary on proposed listings of threatened and endangered species through much of its existence, but as the attitude of waves are altered, so is the beach. This year of change (emulating El Nino, which comes and goes) has (as in the past) resulted in a dramatic drop in attempts to list species, demands for no new federal regulations, and attempts to change or bypass the Endangered Species Act. State's rights, guaranteed by the Constitution and Bill of Rights, do not include Federal government regulation except by Federal legislation, now under attack by states and developers (sensu lato).

The ASIH Environmental Quality Committee provided commentary to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to continue funding of studies on the canebrake rattlesnake, a project threatened for cancellation by developers and a public largely ignorant of the importance of reptiles in natural ecosystems. In response to a request from the Asheville, NC Field Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, requesting information on the status of the Alabama sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus suttkusi) for listing (or delisting, with some suggesting this fish was extinct), we said that there is no evidence to not protect this fish or to support its suggested extinct status. Subsequent action by the Fish and Wildlife Service by not listing the Alabama sturgeon, suggests politics won this battle. We also commented on a working draft of a position paper prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, dealing with the upper Colorado River Basin, entitled "Conserving federally threatened, endangered, and proposed species while providing and enhancing recreational fisheries programs." In that commentary, we alluded to its title as reminiscent of the discontinued TV program "Mission Impossible" and pointed out that protecting fishes threatened with extinction while stocking nonindigenous, mostly predatory, fishes in the same or adjacent waters, will not work.

On behalf of the committee (and with good advice from committee members), I refused to seek or prepare commentary to two rural environmental groups seeking protection of lands of interest to them. Their interests, while all good and directed toward protecting environmental quality, did not involve fish, amphibian, or reptile species in danger of extinction.

We were contacted (via Carter Gilbert) by the Conservation of Land Mammals Committee of the American Society of Mammalogists, asking our cooperation on environmental issues. A letter was sent, indicating that we would be pleased to work with their committee, but no reply was received.

As of this date, the Environmental Quality Committee has prepared draft commentary on our behalf and that of the Desert Fishes Council to the Washington County Water Conservancy District on its draft "The Virgin River habitat conservation and management plan", a suggested attempt to bypass the Endangered Species Act by protecting one of three native fishes in danger of becoming extinct in the Virgin River of Utah, Arizona, and Nevada. Plans (or "plots" with other objectives) to protect single species rarely work to the benefit of other species sharing the same ecosystem. We have just completed commentary on a proposal by the Fish and Wildlife Service to list the Barton Springs salamander (Eurycea sosorum) as endangered, and gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Ronald A. Brandon, Southern Illinois University, in this effort.

I thank all committee members for having put up with not hearing from me on every issue, and I am especially appreciative of those who directed me to the proper contact persons (committee members or not) for the best advice on specific issues.

17. ICHTHYOLOGICAL AND HERPETOLOGICAL COLLECTIONS COMMITTEE

Submitted by Theodore W. Pietsch, Chair

The following is a report of the "Ichthyological and Herpetological Collections Committee" (IHCC) that summarizes our activities for the 1994-1995 academic year. This committee is a consolidation of two former ASIH committees, the "Ichthyological and Herpetological Collections and Resources Committee" and the "Curatorial Supplies and Practices Committee." It is currently made up of four subcommittees: Policy and Practices, Supplies and Resources, Newsletter, and Data Standards.

The **Policy and Practices Subcommittee,** chaired by Doug Nelson, outlined four issues for discussion and/or action during the past year: 1. Collection user policy and user fees; 2. Bis-carbonyl "fixatives" for museum specimens; 3. Handling of "non-traditional" specimen preparations, especially tissue vouchers; and 4. Accession and de-accession policies. The issue of user policy and user fees (especially charges for computer services) generated the most discussion within the subcommittee. This topic has also been widely discussed over the Internet (TAXACOM, etc.). Views within the subcommittee differ greatly, and no consensus exists with respect to these issues. However, the following recommendations are offered: A. Ichthyological and herpetological collections should attempt to identify their user base; B. Collections should assess their sources and levels of funding to determine the need for user fees; C. User fees, if adopted, should be reasonable and fairly applied; D. Museums should strive to develop formal policies with respect to these issues; and E. Discussion on these topics should continue.

Experiments using bis-carbonyl "fixatives" were conducted at the UMMZ, and the results of some of these preliminary tests and observations have been (or will soon be) submitted to "Copeia" and the "Curation Newsletter" for publication. Although these articles presently reflect only the opinions of the authors, the subcommittee agrees on the following: A. These "fixatives" appear not to be a suitable replacement for formaldehyde for morphological specimens destined for archival storage or for DNA studies; B. Bis-carbonyl preserved specimens may prove to be adequate preparations for identification vouchers; C. Experimentation with these (and other) preservatives and fixatives should continue.

There was little discussion with respect to the topics of "non-traditional" specimen preparations and accession/deaccession policies, but the subcommittee plans to address these issues in the near future

Potential problems arising from proposed changes to the USFWS regulations governing international shipments of museum specimens generated much discussion within the subcommittee, the IHCC as a whole, and concerned scientists via the Internet (TAXACOM, ENTLIST, etc.). With the help of Elaine Hoaglund of the Association of Systematics Collections, the IHCC drafted a letter of concern to the USFWS and passed it to ASIH President Roy McDiarmid, recommending that it be sent in the name of the Society.

Another matter arose from discussions of the form(s) that committee reports and recommendations should take (publications, Curation Newsletter, electronic media, etc.). This issue directly concerns the IHCC, but extends to other ASIH committees as well. The Policy and Practices subcommittee discussed several options. We suggest that the BOG take up this discussion with a goal to make committee discussions, reports, and recommendations more available to the overall ASIH membership--possibly via electronic media (e.g., Internet list-server). ASIH members should be reminded that the Board of Governors, at the 1994 meeting in Los Angeles, approved the creation of an ASIH World Wide Web homepage and Gopher. Our new permanent homepage location is <http://www.asih.org/>.

Communications were enhanced this year by the increased use of e-mail by the subcommittee members. We still have a disproportionate amount of discussion taking place among only a few members. We need to broaden both participation and subject matter.

The **Supplies and Practices Subcommittee,** chaired by Lex Snyder, continued their efforts to develop a searchable database of curatorial supplies and vendors. In January 1995, requests were sent to twelve museums asking collections managers to list the important supplies they use to maintain collections of fishes and herps. Respondents were asked to include the vendor's complete address and phone number for each product listed as well as the name of the manufacturer. Responses to this survey are still forthcoming, as of April 1995.

In an effort to distribute the survey forms beyond North America, copies will be made available at the 1995 ASIH meeting at Edmonton to anyone affiliated with a major Central or South American institution, requesting that these forms be passed to appropriate respondents. Otherwise, the subcommittee is prepared to send out more forms to collections in Central and South American and to additional North American institutions by late fall, 1995.

The subcommittee is not prepared to submit a detailed report of survey results until additional input is received from the international centers of ichthyology and herpetology in both North and South America. As soon as sufficient numbers of collections have responded, a report will be made available to members of ASIH in electronic and written form.

Over the past year, via telephone and e-mail, the subcommittee has responded to many questions from the ichthyological and herpetological community on a host of topics; for example, substitutions for Byron Weston Resistall paper, and techniques for preserving fish larvae. A few queries have come from outside the U.S.A., including some from curators of invertebrate as well as botanical collections. The subcommittee responds to these queries by making recommendations or referrals to appropriate sources of information for those products/procedures in question. For future reference, the subcommittee chair maintains a list of questions and sources. We encourage anyone with questions concerning products and their availability to contact the chair via e-mail <amsnyder@bootes.unm.edu>.

The **Newsletter Subcommittee,** chaired by H. J. Walker, has focused this year on composing, editing, publishing, and distributing an issue of the "ASIH Curation Newsletter." We have original contributions from Julian Humphries, Doug Nelson, David Smith, Lex Snyder, and two contributions from our own subcommittee members. John Simmons is also to be thanked for a compilation of annotated references. All subcommittee members and authors have received draft copies of the proposed Newsletter via e-mail. We are in the semifinal stages of editing. The final product should be ready for distribution by late April or early May. Julian Humphries has offered to post the "Newsletter" on the Internet and Gopher servers, and Susan Jewett is working out the details of hardcopy and e-mail distribution.

18. RANEY AWARD COMMITTEE

Submitted by Stephen J. Walsh, Chair

The Raney Award Committee (Stephen J. Walsh, Chair) reviewed 16 meritorious proposals from students representing 15 institutions in 11 states, requesting a total of $11,948.83. Based on a limited amount of money available ($2,500), the Committee decided to fund eight excellent proposals in the amounts indicated:

Elena Amesbury, Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, "Structural and chemical analysis of embryonic nutrition in the Atlantic stingray, Dasyatis sabina." $300.

Jonathan W. Armbruster, Department of Ecology, Ethology and Evolution, University of Illinois, "The systematics of Hypostominae (Siluriformes: Loricariidae)." $300.

Kazue Asoh, Department of Zoology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, "Investigation of the evolution of sexual patterns in damselfishes in the genus Dascyllus." $350.

Ann Cleveland, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, "The role of marine diatoms in the feeding physiology and ecology of the three-spot (Stegastes planifrons) and dusky (S. dorsopunicans) damselfish in Panama." $350.

J. Jasper Lament, Department of Biology, University of Miami, "Reproduction of the introduced Central American cichlid, Cichlasoma urophthalmus in south Florida." $320.

Kirsten R. Poling, Department of Marine Science, University of Texas, "Ontogenetic changes in sensory systems of sciaenid fish larvae and their importance to survival and niche shifts." $240.

Jeffrey S. Shima, Department of Biological Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, "Coral reef fish assemblages: evaluating the role of larval settlement habitats on structure and dynamics of fish populations." $320.

Harleigh E. Willmott, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, "Signal/receptor coevolution in a model visual system." $320.

19. GAIGE AWARD COMMITTEE

Submitted by Craig Guyer, Chair

The Gaige Fund Committee received 14 proposals for consideration. We were informed by the Treasurer that $2000.00 were available for distribution. We decided to select four proposals for support, each at a level of $500.00. The four awards went to:

Todd S. Campbell Department of Zoology University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-0810 (Experimental analysis of asymmetric competition between a native North American anole (Anolis carolinensis) and an introduced anole (A. sagrei))

David Bickford Department of Biology University of Miami Coral Gables, FL 33124-0421 (Genomic screening: Finding phylogenetically informative regions from the DNA of the frogs of the Genyophrynine (Microhylidae: Anura)

Maura Maple 101 T.H. Morgan Building University of Kentucky Lexington, KY 40506-0225 (A field study of maternal selection in a natural population of Dendrobates pumilio)

Adam P. Summers Department of Biology University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA 01003 (The pelvic girdle and burrowing in frogs)

For the upcoming year Maureen A. Donnelly will assume the Chair of the Gaige Fund Committee.

20. ROBERT H. GIBBS, JR. MEMORIAL AWARD COMMITTEE

Submitted by John G. Lundberg, Chair

In March and April 1995, the Gibbs Award Committee evaluated nominations for the 1995 award and arrived at a decision by mail, e-mail and telephone. This year's winner will be announced at the annual ASIH Banquet in Edmonton, on Monday evening June 19, 1995.

We will continue to announce and promote the award through publication of notices in scientific journals, including Copeia. Following the annual ASIH meeting, the chairperson will forward the announcement of the winner for 1995 to these journals along with a request for future nominations. As was done last year, a full page in Copeia , 1995(4), will be devoted to a plaque bearing the name of this year's winner as well as a list of all former recipients. This year's winner and the former recipients of the award will be encouraged to submit a paper in systematic ichthyology to Copeia to appear (following the normal editorial review process) in the second year following the award as the lead ichthyological paper of the journal.

21. HERPETOLOGICAL INFORMATION COORDINATOR

Submitted by John E. Simmons

Fifty letters were received and answered during the past year. Of these, 5 dealt with frogs, 1 with salamanders, 10 with lizards (5 of these were about iguanas), 17 with snakes, and 2 with turtles.

Eleven of the letters asked general questions about herpetology, 5 had questions on captive care, and 1 on careers in herpetology.

The geographic breakdown of the letter writers was as follows:

USA 47 (Arizona 2; Arkansas 1; California 3; Connecticut 1; Florida 3; Illinois 3; Indiana 2; Iowa 1; Kansas 1; Louisiana 1; Maine 1; Maryland 5; Massachusetts 4; Michigan 1; Minnesota 1; Mississippi 1; Missouri 1; Montana 1; New York 3; Ohio 2; Oregon 2; Pennsylvania 1; Rhode Island 1; South Carolina 1; Texas 3; Vermont 1), ENGLAND 1; SLOVOK REPUBLIC 1; SPAIN 1

22. ICHTHYOLOGICAL INFORMATION COORDINATOR

Submitted by Stephen J. Walsh

Stephen J. Walsh, Ichthyological Information Coordinator, reported that he received seven letters since April 1994 from students and professionals in Georgia (2), Missouri, New York, Wisconsin, Brazil, and Spain. Requests were for information pertaining to aquarium fishes, endangered species, global change, impacts of wildfire on stream communities, ecological data for development of an elementary school curriculum, and specific questions relating to science fair and independent study projects. Most letters were delayed because they were sent to previous secretarial offices, but one requester obtained the correct address through America Online.

23. JOINT ASIH-AFS COMMITTEE ON NAMES OF FISHES

Submitted by Joseph S. Nelson, Chair

The joint AFS-ASIH Committee on Names of Fishes consisting of Ed Crossman, Carter Gilbert, Ray Hunziker, Bob Lea, Don Stewart, Jim Williams and Joseph S. Nelson, Chair, reported the following:

1) Dr. Carter R. Gilbert has been added to the committee, to bring total to full capacity.

2) A meeting of the AFS-ASIH Fish Names Committee was held 5 June 1994 at the ASIH conference, in Los Angeles. The following committee members were present: J.S. Nelson (Chairman), R.N. Lea, and E.J. Crossman (and C.R. Gilbert who was a subcommittee member at the time). In addition, 10 subcommittee members (advisors ) attended and actively contributed to our decisions.

3) The main agenda item was to discuss the pros/cons of the direction we think the "Names Lists" should take - i.e., on whether or not to: a) include all or part of Mexican freshwater and marine fishes, b) include accepted French common names for species in Quebec to assist french-speaking biologists (in e.g., Quebec) (and others?) and accepted Spanish common names for species in Mexico to assist spanish-speaking biologists (in Mexico) (and others?) in stabilizing ("their") names. Work will proceed on revising the names list on the assumption that the Mexican fish fauna will be listed and French names given for species in Quebec.

4) Joe Nelson discussed the proposals for adding the Mexican fish fauna and French names for species in Quebec to the fish names list with AFS executive, Bob Kendall, Beth Staehle, and others at the AFS conference in Halifax 21-24 August.

5) The above mentioned proposals were published in the AFS CARS "The Literal Zone 4(1):6".

6) Numerous queries were answered from organizations and the public.

7) Files are being maintained on the many new species that have been described in the last year to the North American fauna and on many other changes.

The committee thanks all individuals providing helpful information on name changes.

24. PUBLICATIONS POLICY COMMITTEE

Submitted by Michael E. Douglas, Chair

The Publications Policy Committee (Michael E. Douglas, Chair) met to discuss issues related to electronic publishing of COPEIA manuscripts. COPEIA sectional editors posed several pertinent questions. For example, should Tables and/or graphics plots be included with manuscripts on disk? Allen Press says "no" - if all tables were formatted in a manner conducive to electronic publishing (i.e., with use of tabs and not 'spacebar' spacing), then Allen Press could possibly use them. However, it apparently takes too much time for Allen Press to check tables for typesetting consistency. They claim it is easier (and faster) for their operation if tables are provided via hard copy.

It was also decided that each sectional editor maintain a file of reviewers which will be passed along to their successor(s). For a given subject or organism, this file would simply contain names/addresses/etc. of appropriate reviewers. It would not include names of individuals who either provide weak reviews or fail to respond in a timely fashion. The intent of the list is not to "blacklist" individuals, but instead to provide new sectional editors with a pool of potential reviewers.

After lengthy discussion, it was also decided that (as part of COPEIA Editorial Policy) sectional editors send each reviewer the following: A copy of all reviews (unsigned) for a given manuscript, and a copy of the cover letter to the corresponding author. Some sectional editors already follow this procedure. It is believed that this input to reviewers will (a) recognize their efforts, (b) satisfy their curiosity, and (c) improve the quality of reviews overall. To make this chore easier for sectional editors, each reviewer should be asked to submit four copies of their review (to eliminate the need for editors to xerox them).

Following a request submitted by ASIH Collections Committee's Policy and Practices Subcommittee, the EP Committee reviewed current COPEIA policy regarding deposition of holotypes for new species described in our journal. Concern was raised that primary types are sometimes deposited in relatively small collections where they might not be readily available, or in the worst case, be lost or disappear. Given that COPEIA has no stated policy with regard to deposition of holotypes, it was then decided that such a policy be implemented (and reproduced in our "Instructions to Authors") as follows: "Holotypes of taxa (both ichthyological and herpetological), described in Copeia as new to science, should be deposited in National or International Centers [as designated in Poss and Collette, Copeia 1995(1)]. Furthermore, secondary types of these taxa should be distributed amongst several museums."

At the close of the meeting, sectional and book review editors were reminded of several key issues: For example, a voice and/or fax number for the corresponding author must be included on each accepted manuscript or book review. Also, now that electronic publishing in full swing, it is imperative to remind every author to check proofs meticulously, for Allen Press no longer performs an initial proof-check for manuscripts (in that Allen Press no longer enters COPEIA manuscripts by hand). Sectional editors were also reminded (a) to obtain disks of accepted manuscripts or book reviews from authors, and (b) to scan these for viruses and DOS-readability prior to transmitting them to the managing editor. Each sectional editor will be given a copy of the virus protection package F-PROT (to be updated periodically). Lastly, each sectional/book review editor was reminded that if a temporary or work-study assistant is being paid by ASIH to work in their shop, then the editor must send a letter to Larry Page (treasurer of ASIH) indicating this, and identifying the person by name.

25. COMMITTEE ON GRADUATE STUDENT PARTICIPATION

Submitted by Dawn S. Wilson, Chair

SUMMARY

The goals of the ASIH Committee for Graduate Student Participation (CGSP) are to represent the student membership of the Society and to consider how Society activities may best serve and attract graduate students. A number of continuing responsibilities exist with which the Committee is charged: 1) fundraising for student travel support; 2) distributing student travel awards; 3) planning and executing student activities at the annual meeting; 4) distributing completed evaluation forms for student award presentations; and 5) enhancing recruitment of new students and promoting the effective and efficient communication among existing student members. Additional tasks pertinent to student concerns may be handled as necessary by the CGSP membership.

FUNDRAISING AT THE 1994-1995 MEETING IN EDMONTON

Chris Dwyer was in charge of the raffle in 1993 and 1994. She developed a long-term set of guidelines/suggestions for conducting the raffle as part of an effort to secure the continued stability and success of this important event at future meetings. A list of publishers that have contributed to past events is now available which makes the task of raffle coordinator a simpler one. This year Phil Harris was in charge of the raffle. He obtained many great books from various publishing companies. John Bruner, from the local committee at the University of Alberta, also contributed considerable effort to the raffle by soliciting several book and other item donations. A detailed list of items donated may be obtained from Dawn Wilson, Chairperson CGSP.

STUDENT TRAVEL AWARDS

Eight $200.00 travel awards were offered for the 1995 meeting in Edmonton: 4 in ichthyology and 4 in herpetology. Adam Summers and Dawn Wilson were responsible for handling award applications and their distribution. A notice was published in the ASIH Meeting Announcement and Call for Papers soliciting applications, outlining how winners will be chosen, and highlighting the important linkage between these awards and the CGSP raffle by inviting members to buy raffle tickets in Edmonton.

By the postmark deadline of the 1st of April there were 11 abstracts submitted to the ichthyology section and 11 abstracts submitted to the herpetology section. The drawing was held on the 10th of April in front of two witnesses. The eight awardees were chosen randomly by Dr. Bruce Cowell, Professor, Biology Dept., University of South Florida in front of a notary public, Janet Camp. A list of awardees and alternatives was mailed to Dr. Larry Page, Treasurer ASIH. The four herpetology awards went to Karen Warkentin, Carol Britson, Scott Keogh, and Dawn Wilson. The four ichthyology awards went to Marian Maas, David Neely, Cheryl Wilga, and Gayle Barbin. In the event that one of the awardees cannot accept an award, the alternate for the Herpetology category is Paul Doughty and the alternate for the Ichthyology category is Erick Sturm.

THE ANNUAL MEETING:

STUDENT SOCIAL

Logistics for the Graduate Student Social have been arranged with the Local Committee by Robert Espinoza, Keith Jackson and several volunteer students from the University of Alberta. It is at this time I would like to formally acknowledge the volunteer work by Keith Jackson. He organized several organizational meetings of Univ of Alberta students before the Edmonton meeting in order to solicit student participation and help for several graduate student events. Without the help of students like Keith from the local meeting site, the job of Chair and Member of the CGSP would be extremely difficult. The social is scheduled to take place on the evening of Friday, June 16 from 4:00 to 5:30 PM immediately preceding the General Reception. Cheerful greetings, free beer and snacks are reliable features of this event.

CGSP WORKSHOP

As part of an ongoing effort to offer useful services to and promote positive interaction among ASIH student members, the CGSP will be conducting it's annual workshop, as advertised in the ASIH Meeting Announcements and Call for Papers, on Friday June 16, from 12:00 to 1:30 PM. The theme for this years workshop is entitled "Preparation and Submission of Scientific Manuscripts to Journals." Cheryl Wilga and Dawn Wilson have coordinated this event. This year, we are delighted to have Drs. Catherine Toft and Robert Jaeger direct our workshop. Dr. Toft has written several essays on "Writing for Scientific Journals" and Dr. Jaeger, has been editor of Herpetologica for over 13 years. Each guest speaker will talk for 20 minutes and the floor will then be open for questions from participants. Lunch will be provided to all that attend.

CGSP RECRUITMENT AND COMMUNICATION

This year, like last, all of the members of the CGSP were operating via e-mail and this made a clear difference in the speed, efficiency and effectiveness of communications necessary to organize and conduct CGSP activities. It is hoped that this approach will be maintained and developed even further in future years. In particular, having a greater premium placed on listing e-mail addresses in the next ASIH Directory could prove very productive. As chairperson of the CGSP for the first time, I found that I relied very heavily on the local committee and their graduate students. I would thus like to suggest that each year the new chairperson of the CGSP solicits at least one graduate student volunteer from the local meeting site to be a member of the CGSP.

26. COMMITTEE ON SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS

Submitted by Michael E. Douglas, Chair

The Committee on Special Publications (Michael E. Douglas, Chair) merely updated and edited the committee's 1994 report. During the 1994 annual meeting, the BOG voted to return the issue of special publications to the Executive Committee for further discussion and recommendations. The 1994 report is as follows: Two aspects of ASIH Special Publications were discussed by the committee (in 1994): an irregularly-produced series of book-length publications, and a regular monograph series to accommodate larger, accepted manuscripts. For both series, an adequate discussion of background, need, format, editing/ production, marketing, etc., was provided by J. Humphries and S. Fink in their lengthy "Report of the Ad-hoc Committee on Special Publications," provided to the BOG at the 1993 annual meeting in Austin, TX. These topics are thus not reiterated here. Instead, the committee recognizes that each special publication series should be developed by the society, and offers its recommendations regarding implementation of each.

The committee felt that there was no direct pressure in 1994 to immediately enact specific guidelines with regard to publishing of book-length monographs. This was because no proposal was pending at that time, and to the committee's knowledge, none were immediately forthcoming. However, this has changed in the past year. Two "feelers" with regard to book-length publications have been received by the committee during 1995. Given this, and recognizing that each book-length monograph will differ with regard to subject matter, reader interest, and financial support, the committee suggests that each proposal be immediately dealt with on an individual basis by an ASIH standing committee. This committee would be charged with evaluating proposals that formally request ASIH support and/or subsidy for book-length monograph publication. The committee would consist of individuals who have accrued recent experience with regard to publishing of books or book-length monographs.

The committee also offers the following general points which pertain to book-length monographs: Proposals would be submitted directly to the committee chair, and after being reviewed by the committee, a recommendation be provided to the BOG at the next annual meeting. The BOG would then vote on the recommendation. Every monograph proposal would demonstrate (or accrue) financial support outside the society to cover at least 80% of estimated publishing costs. The society would subsidize no more than 20%. Funding would hopefully be committed at the time of submittal, but must certainly be in place when the committee recommendation is forwarded to the BOG.

The SP committee also forwarded these comments with regard to a monograph series composed of publications greater than 50 manuscript pages in length. Such manuscripts would be compiled into a single issue of 100-200 published pages. For a given year, a monograph may consist of only a single, large article, or alternatively, a compilation of several shorter ones. The latter situation is more likely. The monograph series would be multi- disciplinary (i.e., both ichthyological and herpetological), and unrestricted with regard to subject matter. It is believed that longer papers with genetic, ecological, or behavioral themes will be equally as probable as those of a systematic nature. In other words, with regard to subject matter, the monograph series would simply mirror current issues of COPEIA.

The monograph would be published and mailed concurrently with the fourth issue of COPEIA. This approach has both economic and editorial implications: publishing and mailing the series would be handled by Allen Press. Its mailing concomitant with the fourth issue of COPEIA would be a substantial cost saving measure. The series would also utilize the current editorial staff at Arizona State University for its implementation, and rely upon appropriate COPEIA sectional editors for the review process. Given the potential lengths of these manuscripts, however, additional reviewers and lengthier review times would be an inherent aspect of the monograph series. However, the COPEIA copy editor, who is currently 51%, should be increased to 60% to cover the additional work load.

The monograph series would be titled COPEIA Monographs, and would utilize a different cover design and color. Volume number would be congruent with regularly-issued COPEIA. The series would be initiated in 1997, and the first issue would appear concomitant with COPEIA 1997(4). The monograph series would be included with ASIH membership. In one scenario, ASIH membership fees would be elevated $5.00/year to cover publishing costs (figures appended). Alternatively, savings accrued from publishing COPEIA in electronic format (approximately $10,000.00; see managing editor's report) would be re-invested by the society into the monograph series. In this scenario, institutional fees rather than individual membership fees would then be elevated to cover additional funds required. The committee recommends the second scenario.

Pricing [as per 1995(1)] from Allen Press re: COPEIA Monographs:

TOTAL $17,930.00

TOTAL/3500 (i.e., cost/subscription) $5.12

27. SOCIETY HISTORIAN

Submitted by Mark R. Jennings

During the past year, I have continued to work on a history of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. A small piece of my research will be presented at the 75th annual meeting this summer in Edmonton.

I have only had a single piece of mail this year--a request for a letter of support in the award from another scientific society to a distinguished ASIH member.

I am continuing to work on a guide to interviewing "old time" fishery biologists and herpetologists. It should be completed later this year.

Finally, I made a number of written suggestions to the ASIH Endowment Committee to help increase revenue and enrollment. Hopefully, some of these suggestions will assist ASIH in reaching its overall goals by years 2000 and 2005.

28. REPRESENTATIVE TO AAAS

No report submitted.

29. REPRESENTATIVE TO ASSOCIATION OF SYSTEMATICS COLLECTIONS

Submitted by Lawrence M. Page

The 1995 Annual Meeting of the Association of Systematics Collections will be held on 30 June - 3 July, after this year's ASIH meeting. The ASIH representative to ASC will submit a report on the ASC meeting for inclusion in the 1996 report to the ASIH Board of Governors. The report on the 1994 ASC meeting has already been submitted and appeared in the "Summary of the Meetings" in Copeia 1994(4).

30. REPRESENTATIVE TO AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY

Submitted by Melvin L. Warren, Jr.

Melvin L. Warren, Jr., ASIH representative to the American Fisheries Society (AFS), reported several activities within AFS of direct relevance to ASIH, particularly those concerning conservation of aquatic organisms. The Fisheries Action Network of AFS has chosen "Stocks at Risk" as a focus topic for 1995; Mel Warren serves as the Steward for the topic. At the 1994 annual AFS meeting in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Warren chaired a facilitated session co-sponsored by the AFS Endangered Species Committee and the AFS Genetics, Fisheries Management, and Education sections. Participants from over 12 AFS subunits examined current and future issues and potential AFS activities for stocks at risk. Discussions ranged from genetic conservation pools for Pacific Northwest salmonids to marine fishes and rare crayfishes. In part from that effort, the Endangered Species Committee of AFS, chaired by Paul Angermeier, began work on several new initiatives including establishment of subcommittees on marine fishes (co- chairs Gene Huntsman and Jack Musick), crayfishes (co-chairs Chris Taylor and Mel Warren), freshwater mollusks (chair Richard Neves), Pacific salmon restoration (chair Jack Williams), watershed restoration/protection (chair Kevin Richards), and reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act (chair to be selected). The Marine Fishes Subcommittee has established a liaison with the Office of Protected Resources in the National Marine Fisheries Service and has chosen taxonomists to aid in assessing status of depleted and rare marine species. Ultimately, the subcommittee plans to present the findings of their assessment in Fisheries. The Crayfishes Subcommittee has assembled a team of crayfish scientists and reviewers, secured funding for color plates, developed status assessments and state and provincial distributions of all crayfishes of the United States and Canada, and prepared a manuscript for publication in Fisheries in early 1996. The Freshwater Mollusks Subcommittee will express professional knowledge, opinions, and concerns on molluscan topics of regional and national significance such as the recent proposal to list seven mussel species in the Apalachicola Basin, dredging of the Sunflower River, Mississippi, and a proposed dam on the North Fork Hughes River, West Virginia.

The AFS 1996 annual meeting in Tampa, FL, will feature a workshop organized by Jack Williams on watershed restoration. The workshop is co-sponsored by the AFS Endangered Species Committee, AFS Fisheries Management Section, Bureau of Land Management, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The 1996 meeting also will include a day-long symposium, co-sponsored by the AFS Endangered Species Committee and Southeastern Fishes Council (chair and organizer, Mel Warren), featuring application of long-term and large-scale aquatic data bases (e.g., fishes, mussels, non-indigenous species) for management of imperiled species and communities in the southern United States.

Of paramount importance to the ASIH membership are AFS activities associated with the upcoming reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act. In the words of an AFS committee leader, "some Congressional 'leaders' are drawing up plans to gut and fillet the Endangered Species Act prior to reauthorization." The ecological importance of maintaining the integrity of this overarching Act can hardly be overstated, and if ever there was a time when ichthyologists and herpetologists need to provide expert input, that time is now. The AFS Endangered Species Committee is forming a Reauthorization Subcommittee to provide science-based knowledge to the debate. The subcommittee will communicate with key Congressional staffers and representatives of the Endangered Species Coalition. The ASIH membership is urged to participate in the reauthorization process by writing legislators, critically reviewing and providing comments on proposed principles and changes to be incorporated in the reauthorized Act, contacting Paul Angermeier to express your willingness to contribute to the efforts of the Reauthorization Subcommittee, and supporting AFS efforts to see the Act come through the debates intact. An excellent package on letter writing tips for the reauthorization of the Act was developed by the Western Division of AFS (Carl Burger, President) and is available upon request from Mel Warren (601\234-2744 or e-mail: fswarren@vm.cc.olemiss.edu). Paul Angermeier can be contacted at 703\231-4501.

The AFS has published a policy statement concerning reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act (Angermeier and Williams. 1994. Fisheries 19(1):26-29). To date, ASIH has passed a resolution (Copeia 1994:1106) strongly supporting the reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act, but no other action has been taken to date. Societal action on this issue is not only appropriate and timely, but an ethical and professional obligation as reauthorization debates and hearings proceed in Congress in 1995. As ASIH representative to AFS, Mel Warren requested that the BOG provide informed approval of endorsement of the AFS policy statement on reauthorization and that the ASIH Resolutions Committee draft a resolution of full endorsement of the AFS policy statement for approval at the business meeting. To that end the AFS policy statement was provided to the ASIH Secretary for distribution to the BOG. The ASIH membership and committees also are urged to read and digest the AFS policy statement and use it in reauthorization activities. Larry Page, in Warren's absence, agreed to lead discussion of endorsement of the AFS reauthorization policy statement and answer BOG or member inquiries at the BOG and business meetings of the 1995 annual ASIH meeting in Edmonton. Upon consideration and passage of a resolution of endorsement at the 1995 meeting, Warren requested that the President of ASIH or appointed delegate distribute the resolution to all members of Congress, legislative committees, appropriate federal agencies, the Endangered Species Coalition, and the executive director of AFS.

SEE ATTACHMENT - APPENDIX 3

31. REPRESENTATIVE TO EARLY LIFE HISTORY SECTION OF AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY

Submitted by Mike Fahay

For the second consecutive year, the Early Life History Section (AFS) meeting will be held in a foreign country. This year's meeting is scheduled for June 26 thru July 2, 1995, at the University of Sydney and will be hosted by the Australian Society for Fish Biology. The seven-day program will include four days devoted to the Larval Fish Conference, followed by a day off, and then a two-day meeting of the host society. Of possible interest to ASIH members are these planned symposia, listed with their conveners: 1. Population dynamics and oceanography (R. Cowen & M.J. Kingsford) 2. Condition & growth of fish larvae (I. Suthers & J. Kalish) 3. Biology/life history strategies of Pomatomus saltatrix (J. Hare & A. Miskiewcz) 4. Larval fish & systematics (J. Leis, J.Olney & M. Okiyama) 5. Aquaculture (S. Battaglene, J. Holt & B. Nowak) 6. Morphology, physiology and behavior of fish larvae (L. Fuiman, & M. Milicich) 7. Contrasting larval biology from different environments (P. Gehrke & J. Govoni) 8. Biology of reef fish larvae (P. Doherty, R. Schmitt, S. Holbrook & V. Dufour) Proceedings of these symposia will be published in Aust. J. Mar. & Freshw. Res. or Bull. Mar. Sci. The 1996 meeting is scheduled to be held in conjunction with ASIH in New Orleans.

32. REPRESENTATIVE TO THE IUCN

Submitted by George B. Rabb

Under the new Director General, David McDowell, the IUCN Secretariat is currently undergoing restructuring. Part of this restructuring includes decentralizing and relying more on the IUCN Regional offices. The Director General sees this as a means of increasing the effectiveness of the various programs within IUCN, as well as a way of keeping in closer contact with IUCN's members. At the same time, the restructuring plans call for a more cohesive Union. There is a strong movement for the member organizations and the volunteer Commissions to work more closely together, towards integrated goals, and to help realize the great potential of IUCN.

In light of the restructuring of the IUCN Secretariat, the SSC and the Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas are working together with IUCN Regional Offices to develop National Biodiversity Conservation Groups. By encouraging the cooperation of SSC and CNPPA members within a region, these groups will help to promote regional and national recognition of species diversity and the conservation of this biodiversity. Many nations will use these groups to respond to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Pilot programs have been set up in several South American countries, and networks are being identified in Eastern Africa.

Also taking a regional approach is the Sustainable Use Initiative, on which I have spent a great deal of time as Chair of SSC. The Sustainable Use Initiative will address the issues broadly and look at ecological, socioeconomic, cultural/philosophical, and institutional factors that affect sustainable use. To look at more specific questions, the Sustainable Use Specialist Group is planning on breaking down into regional networks which will address sustainable use issues relevant to the particular region. In order to consider sustainable use from all angles, these networks will be expanded to include social scientists and resource managers. The results of the case studies in the various regions will be presented at the next General Assembly.

The SSC is also actively pursuing an information management system. Very generally, the goals are first to capacitize the network for information capture and retrieval. Then, to enable the network to analyze the data in more effective ways and to answer many more questions, we will link our data with related data, such as GIS data or data on protected areas. A Vision Working Group and a Technical Working Group have been established to implement this system. The Vision Working Group met in November 1994 and has produced an overall vision. This Group is meeting again in April 1995 in order to address more detailed issues, such as the questions of scale, partnership, data ownership and data managers.

At the November 1994 meeting in Fort Lauderdale, the SSC Steering Committee adopted the SSC Strategic Plan. While the Sustainable Use Initiative, the National Biodiversity Conservation Groups, and the information management system are external goals of the SSC, other strategic goals are more internal. The need for more effective communication (both internal and external) and the need for monitoring and evaluation systems were recognized in the Strategic Plan.

While in Fort Lauderdale, many of the SSC Steering Committee members as well as other SSC members attended the Ninth Conference of the Parties to CITES and contributed to many of the discussions, especially in caucuses. One of the largest issues at this COP was that of the listing criteria for species on the Appendices to CITES. The main proposal on the new criteria was largely drafted by IUCN, led by an ad-hoc group under Georgina Mace of the Zoological Society of London. After some debate, the issue was given to a working group. Although our draft was somewhat modified by the working group (in which John Robinson of NYZS/WCS and Simon Stuart of SSC were significant players), the numerical guidelines remained, which was one of our biggest concerns. It was difficult to reach consensus within the working group, but when it was presented to the Parties, the compromise passed unanimously.

In addition to the new listing criteria, several proposals garnered much attention at the CITES meetings. There were four controversial issues involving crocodilians: 1) the transfer of Ecuador's black caiman population to Appendix II to enable the development of a ranching operation; 2) the maintenance of Indonesia's saltwater crocodile population (currently allowed for wild harvest on a quota basis) on Appendix II for ranching; 3) the maintenance of Madagascar's Nile crocodile population (currently allowed for wild harvest on a quota basis) on Appendix II for ranching; and 4) approval of a wild harvest quota for Nile crocodiles in Tanzania (previously approved by the CITES Parties for ranching rather than wild harvest). On all of these, the Crocodile Specialist Group (through IUCN delegation members Perran Ross and Specialist Group Chair Harry Messel) played a central role in developing the final compromise.

Sharks was the only fishery issue formally before the meeting, as proposals to list various bluefin tuna species had been withdrawn before the meeting. As was expected, there was opposition to discussing sharks as a commercial fishery in the context of CITES, with Japan taking the lead, arguing that there were other agencies more competent than CITES to regulate trade in sharks, as no species of which are currently listed on CITES. Although not formally an amendment proposal, a discussion document submitted by the United States and calling for the CITES Animals Committee to review the status and trade of sharks was adopted after negotiation in a working group. IUCN (through Sonny Gruber and Carl Safina of the SSC Shark Specialist Group) played a major role in achieving a satisfactory outcome to this debate, through an intervention and negotiations on the working group established to draw up a compromise text. Although the CITES Animals Committee will be responsible for the review, the Committee expects the technical work to be carried out by the SSC Shark Specialist Group and TRAFFIC.

A few weeks after CITES, the IUCN Council adopted SSC's recommended new categories of threat for its Red Lists. Again Georgina Mace was the principal on this development. A Red Lists for plants is currently being compiled, and the next Red List for animals, which will be published in time for the next General Assembly in October 1996, will use the new categories. The new categories have already been applied to all birds and to primates. The SSC is now developing an expert system (user-friendly software) to aid in applying the new categories. Guidelines to use the Red List Categories will also be developed in the near future.

In addition to the Red Lists, the Specialist Groups continue to compile Action Plans. The most recent Action Plan produced by the SSC is the revised Cetacean Action Plan, Dolphins, Porpoises, and Whales: 1994-1998 Action Plan for the Conservation of Cetaceans, which was published in December. This second edition Action Plan identifies 51 priority conservation projects. The first edition listed 45 projects of which 15 have been completed, 23 are underway, 9 were downlisted, and 12 are in early stages of implementation.

The South Asian Reptile and Amphibian Specialist Group was recently awarded a grant from the Peter Scott IUCN/SSC Action Plan Fund to cover costs related to the production of an Action Plan of the species covered by this Specialist Group. A draft manuscript is expected later this year.

The Coral Reef Fish Specialist Group has recently developed a coral reef fish data base. In conjunction with the data base, this Specialist Group is preparing a Conservation Overview, which will include a list of coral reef fishes used in the marine aquarium industry. The listing will indicate the ease with which each species can be kept in home aquariums. The Overview will also include a study of conservation issues organized by country.

The Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group has continued to make progress in its efforts to protect Mexico's Bolson Tortoise. In 1993, a privately owned 45,000 acre tract of prime Bolson tortoise habitat was protected through an agreement between project scientists and the land owner. In 1994, owners of adjacent land expressed interest in joining this voluntary land management and protection effort. Unlike the original tract, these properties have been overgrazed and will require grassland restoration. Plans are underway to incorporate these large land-holdings into the reserve which would protect a significant portion of this remote valley, securing the future of the Bolson tortoise in the wild.

SSC continues its work to examine the possible effects of global factors on species through the Task Force on Declining Amphibian Populations (DAPTF). Two major DAPTF groups were established during 1994, one on climatic and atmospheric change, and one on chemical contaminants. Additionally, SSC and the Fauna and Flora Preservation Society have been cooperatively developing a major marketing campaign to benefit amphibian conservation.

The SSC is also one of 20 partner organizations in Ocean Aid, a rock concert series that will benefit marine conservation.

33. REPRESENTATIVE TO SOCIETY FOR STUDY OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES AND HERPETOLOGISTS LEAGUE

Submitted by Alan H. Savitzky

The Herpetologists' League is meeting with ASIH this year, following a hiatus of one year during which HL met with the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Present plans call for HL to meet in association with ASIH into the foreseeable future. That arrangement has worked to the benefit of ASIH in previous years, as evidenced by herpetological attendance at the meetings at the University of Illinois and the University of Texas.

The Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles continues to resist regular joint meetings with ASIH. However, SSAR has committed themselves to join ASIH and HL for a meeting in Seattle in 1997, and the SSAR is favorably disposed toward a joint Canadian meeting after that time, if an acceptable site can be found. It seems likely, however, that joint meetings of all three herpetological societies will continue to be the exception.

An additional issue of joint concern is the outstanding matter of a combined herpetological society membership directory. This matter is further complicated by the recent establishment of Internet sites for ASIH and SSAR, which will provide some of the same information to individuals with access to Internet services. The need remains, however, for a maximally inclusive hardcopy directory of herpetologists, and discussions continue on ways to best meet that need. Although all three societies approved of the concept of such a directory in the past, the project will likely require an individual dedicated to meeting the logistic challenges presented by merging dissimilar and often inconsistent databases.

34. REPRESENTATIVE TO AMERICAN ELASMOBRANCH SOCIETY

Submitted by George H. Burgess

The American Elasmobranch Society (AES) held its Tenth Annual Meeting on 2-6 June 1994 at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, meeting concurrently with ASIH. AES program chairman Jeff Seigel organized the meeting with wonderful assistance from fellow members of the ASIH local committee. The meeting consisted of four sessions of contributed papers, a one-session "Selected Topics in Elasmobranch" symposium, and the traditional open slide/video finale. The contributed sessions were devoted to Morphology, Systematics and Evolution (9 papers); Population Structure, Demography, and Reproductive Biology (9); Behavior (6); and Feeding (4). The "Selected Topics in Elasmobranch Physiology" symposium had eleven contributed papers. Eight presentations were made at the open slide/video session. The AES Presidential Address, "Sharks Then and Now: How Times Have Changed", was given by Donald R. Nelson during the ASIH plenary session. AES sessions were equally well attended by AES and ASIH members. Two student workshops, "Helpful Hints for Presenting Papers" and "Use of Computer Networks" also were conducted.

The Society's Executive Board and Board of Directors met on 2 June, and the Business meeting was held on 4 June. Elections conducted at the Business Meeting produced the following results:

The AES Banquet was held on 6 June. At the banquet the Gruber Award for best student paper was awarded to Steven Kajiura for his contribution "Seasonal dynamics of dental sexual dimorphism in the Atlantic stingray, Dasyatis sabina". The evening was highlighted by the Second Annual Elasmo Auction which raised considerable funding for the Student Travel Fund.

AES is continually appreciative of ASIH for its support of joint meetings and will next meet in Edmonton, Alberta on 15-19 June 1995 in association with the 1995 ASIH annual meetings.

35. REPRESENTATIVE TO FISH BEHAVIOR GROUP OF ANIMAL BEHAVIOR SOCIETY

Submitted by Arthur A. Myrberg, Jr.

The Animal Behavior Society had its annual meeting at the University of Washington, Seattle, July 24-28, 1994, 432 papers were presented, an increase of 18% over the number presented at the ABS meeting in 1993. Fifty papers dealt with subjects of direct interest to members of our Society: 28 (6.5%) dealt with fishes, 16 (3.8%) dealt with reptiles, and 6 (1.3%) dealt with amphibians. These three fields increased their representation by almost 14% over that contributed in 1993, with the % of total contributions remaining approximately the same as in 1993 (11.5% vs 12%).

More families of fishes were represented than seen in many years, but their % of representation continues to slip (i.e., 1992: 12.4%, 1993: 8.1%, 1994: 6.5%). The most 'popular' families included the poeciliids and gasterosteids (6 papers each), followed by the pomacentrids, centrarchids, cyprinids and mormyrids (2 papers each) and the salmonids, batrachoidids, chaetodontids, percids, gobiids, labrids and cichlids (one contribution each). One paper was of a general nature. The number of cichlid papers dropped precipitously from that presented in previous years.

The most 'popular' herpetological group, as in previous years, was the lizards (7 papers), followed by the snakes (5), turtles (4) and the salamanders and frogs (3 contributions each). The contributions dealing with reptiles, particularly the snakes, increased markedly over the number reported during the last several years.

Reports were divided among the following subjects (loosely defined)

Subject	Fishes	Reptiles	Amphibians
Mate-choice	6	3	1
Pred.prey	4	5	0
Habitat-selection	4	1	0
Communication	3	1	2
Reproduction	3	0	2
Aggression	3	1	0
Parentalcare	2	0	0
Movement-patterns	1	1	0
Sensory	1	0	1
Recognition-patterns	0	1	0
Rhythms	1	0	0
Learning	0	1	0
Behav.thermoregulation	0	1	0
Endocrinefunction	0	1	0
Totals	28	16	6

The 32nd annual meeting of the Animal Behavior Society will be held 8-13 July, 1995 at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.

An ad hoc Latin American Affairs Committee has been created by the ABS Society. The committee has the dual function of not only trying to increase the diversity of the membership, but also of reaching out to the many countries to the south so as to broaden the perspective of the Society and hopefully benefit behavioral scientists in Latin America.

The journal Animal Behaviour has changed one part of its format. The Short Communications section has been dropped. All short communications will, henceforth, follow the format of formal papers. A new format has been created: Commentaries. It will deal with constructive critiques of previously published papers, including comments on statistical analysis, theory, methodology or nomenclature.

36. REPRESENTATIVE TO SOCIETY FOR PRESERVATION OF NATURAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS

Submitted by Carol K. Malcolm

The 1994 Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections (SPNHC) meeting was held in conjunction with the Association of Systematic Collections (ASC) annual meeting in St. Louis, Missouri on 11 May to 15 May 1994. The meetings were hosted by the Missouri Botanical Gardens and the welcoming address was given by Dr. Peter Raven.

The major focus of these meetings was how institutional policies and long-term planning play an integral role in natural history collections. The tremendous value of natural history collections was emphasized, especially in light of continued threats to living biotas.

A workshop on collections care initiatives had presentations from the following groups:

National Institute of Conservation - 225 participants working on conservation of Natural Science specimens to develop a set of blueprints for collection care. Recommendations and strategies need to be implemented. Important points:

How to obtain goals:

World Council on Collections Resources - A summarization of the Madrid meeting included four themes; the importance of natural history collections, the need to assess the status of natural history collections, an overview of national and international incentives, and the directions collections care should take. A series of resolutions was developed by moderators of sessions.

Must document use and benefit of natural history collections

Need to develop strategies to gain support for collections (facility and resource needs) especially in developing countries. World Council on Collections Resources (WCCR) funded research to train people in systematics, collections and curatorial personnel. Need to expand database roles, support education and public awareness. Support international transfer of materials and in formation. Endorsed by UNESCO, UNCED, also adopted by several organizations. Discussion on role of World Council agreed that need is to integrate efforts on an international level.

American Institute of Conservation - Is a group separate from International Institute of Conservation (IIC is parent group), focus on collections including those of natural history materials. Outreach activities include training, education. Standards of practice include:

Canadian Institute of Conservation - Conservation of natural history collections is changing. Have a variety of new materials (bone, feather, antler) and new and different problems. Are also working with more specimens than ever. Treatments developed may be restricted in applicability. A survey in Canada indicated some misconceptions in the role of the conservator. Research on specimens may be rigorous but on preservation and documentation more may be needed. Not necessarily true that once something is deteriorated it cannot be repaired. Major needs:

NSF Research Collections in Systematics and Ecology - Sources of funding for museums are available. International and collaborative efforts with other countries and training of foreign students is important. Section also co-funds environmental and biotic survey projects. There is also funding for development of infrastructure, software for databases and data entry projects. Also a need for research in conservation. Mention that new guidelines are available on the internet. Research Collections in Systematics and Ecology (RCSE) has 5 panelists per proposal with emphasis on project oriented ideas rather than ongoing support. Collections support includes computerization; want applicants to do a task analysis and to justify budgets. Emphasized that it is important to document the importance of collections including publications, researchers and use.

Following these reports an open discussion ensued on the presented topics. There was major discussion on the role of taxon level systematic groups (such as ASIH) and how discipline specific groups need to be involved. It was also mentioned the taxon oriented societies have their own collection committees which have influence. Was suggested that SPNHC may need to take incentive to involve these groups.

Orphaned collections remain a concern to many, sometimes receiving institution can receiving funds for transport and housing of material. Need to have 99 year loans supported. Importance of voucher specimens remains, also concern for ancillary materials (such as DNA) that need to be preserved, and their treatment, storage and care documented.

Training brought up as absolutely critical, some suggestion that conservator level training may be extreme, program may be ambitious. Alternative of emergency training to meet needs, such as 12 month rapid class for small numbers of trainees. Funding for training is tied to public awareness, how education involving natural history collections can reach a meaningful level. Must get information across to public and the researchers must get involved in collections care.

Breakout sessions focused on five topics:

Education - There is a need to evaluate lectures, and provide a syllabus for training, need to allow in service training and training for students. Want more training in the US, question of who should do the training, where will funds come from, to get funding may need to improve relationships with museum directors. Want specific training at SPNHC meetings and to encourage the publication of technical bulletins and leaflets. Need more information on preventative conservation. Want distance learning programs in the US, also need discipline specific to be integrated with collections management.

Research - Problems with credibility (some grants require conservators participation rather than that of collection manager), there is also no "pool of researchers". Need to establish list of priorities, and implement the actual research on collections. Communication remains a problem, internet skills and resources badly needed. There is a range of costs, some questions are important to many researchers. For large scale projects, museums should pool resources, may need ASC to coordinate, SPNHC could review NIC reports and prioritize projects. Museums and Galleries Commission may participate. Medium scale projects could be institution funded if value is recognized. Small scale projects may be done by establishment of SPNHC small grant program. Participation could be coordinated among SPNHC, CCI, WCCR and NIC.

Technology Transfer - Need international clearing house for information. First need to determine if internet discussion group exists or needs to be established. Might investigate SPNHC gopher, listserv, bulletin board; need to canvas membership to get host. Want to make technical information available this way. Need to both gather and disseminate information. Possibility of directory of labs, related industries and databases. Prepare a list of current research

Educating the Public - Tutorial available, a consortium of groups will develop a plan for public relations. Is important to target lay population. Could work in conjunction with Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE)

Strategies to Develop Resources - Need to develop ideas then get funding to implement. If local politics are involved, get local funding. Must focus on systematic collections but talk in a familiar language. Need to function as information brokers and need to emphasize the utility of museum collections. Important to establish alliances with discipline specific groups and with media and public relations companies. Need specific projects with examples of the value of and need for, collections.

The workshop on institutional planning and policies covered the following:

Long Term Planning - Contrast of research and collections versus exhibits and programs. To develop long term plan, requested status reports and project goals from each division, then hired outside consultant. Plan that is developed may be "pie in the sky", especially faced with cutbacks. Must develop more realistic plans, not only goals but how they will be obtained.

Collections Policies - Must have formal way to say both "yes" and "no" to requests. Can expect to have considerable disagreement, may require constant revision. May have in-house resistance. Definitions of functions and tasks may vary. Different meanings for term "documentation". Need to recognize value of the process of developing a policy. Steps in the process:

Data Policies - Once you have a mission statement and statement of purpose, how much proprietary interest does the institution have, Not just researchers are interested these days. Now have requests from government, educators, consultants etc. Major concern: lose control of data. How do we use our data and insure survival of collections. Is possible to start with data release agreement which must be signed. Agreement states:

Identified forms of data release:

Questions and Comments: What about freedom of information act requests? Is "county only" useful information? What about fees and "for profit" data requests?

Other related issues: Who makes the decisions and enforces the policy? Its important to keep detailed procedures (that may change) out of policy statements. Also must make policy known, make people sign that they have read and understood.

Safety issues and policies, many museums lack completely.

Group Reports covered the following topics and points:

Setting collections priorities - Field specimen documentation, quality assurance, verification and completeness (quality and reliability rating), internal access and security, proprietary research data, required fields, record keeping and archives (what and for how long?), privacy issues (donor and loan records), legality of software, charges for services, archives and backup, documentation in form of metadata, precision (data accuracy), policy for training, cost effectiveness.

Accessions - Permanent receipt into collection. Need policy for acceptance, note condition of material and be aware of legal string. Permanent loan may be useful, have collections go where they are best used. Documentation must consider stability of papers, non-human readable forms must be kept current, and with archives of ancillary material. Information transfer includes translation, field notes, document changes.

Information Management - Can be broken into four categories

Repatriation and Legal Issues - Native American graves repatriation act. How well is law written, money will be required to comply. Orphan collections and repository institutions -who identifies ownership. What about deaccessioning decisions, what about ancillary material such as field notes. Need statement about tax value in some cases. May also need to define acceptable means of disposal and how proceeds should be used.

Health and Safety - Primary concerns are health and safety, hazardous disposal and emergency preparedness policy. There are many additional sources of safety information.

A half day risk assessment workshop covered agents of deterioration, risk recognition, estimating the magnitude of risk and mitigation strategies and priorities.

Presentation about the National Fish and Wildlife Forensic Laboratory - Established in 1989, work related to endangered species act and CITES. Confiscated material is stored in Ashland, Oregon and then either discarded, used by lab or used for educational purposes (WWF Suitcase for Survival, Cargo for Conservation). Material is either evidence or property, track using a barcode system. Laboratory has complete necropsy facility, poison and chemistry lab, criminalistics lab, electron microscope, DNA and electrophoresis area. Seems that ivory trade had decreased but confounded by trade in mammoth and mastodon material. Morphology section examples: - North American raptors (are many) can identify to species using just the talon. Mammals- Often need to identify wildlife brought in from outside US. May need to identify a claw that has been made into jewelry, etc.

The following short technical presentations were given. Conservation of Subfossil Vertebrate Material in Situ Conservation of Regional Paleobotany Collection Use of Chemical Test Strips Considerations on Rearranging Mid-Size Herbarium Storage Trays for Three Dimensional Objects Computer Conversion Methods for Hard Copy Records Documenting Collections Care of Invertebrates A Program to Locate "Lost" Paleontological Collections Use of University Research Collections in Undergraduate Education Dealing with Photographic Collections Appraisers and Collections

37. REPRESENTATIVE TO THE NATIONAL BIOLOGICAL SERVICE

Submitted by Walter R. Courtenay, Jr.

There were no official contacts between the National Biological Service and the ASIH representative during this past year.

38. MEETING LOCAL COMMITTEE

Submitted by Joseph S. Nelson and Mark V.H. Wilson, Co-chairs

1) The American Society of Ichthyologists (75th annual meeting) will meet on the campus of the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, with the American Elasmobranch Society and the Herpetologists' League from 15 June to 19 June 1995.

2) The following five symposia will be held: Interrelationships of Fishes, Natural History of Amphibians and Reptiles, Northern Fish Ecology - marine and freshwater, Snake phylogeny, and Turtle Systematics and Morphology. In addition, there will be about 28 sessions of contributed papers from the three societies (18 from ASIH) and a poster session over the four days of paper/poster presentations.

3) Other special events will be held such as a gathering of the Canadian Association of Herpetologists, meeting of the Environmental Quality Committee, the HL Conservation Committee, and the Graduate Student Workshop.

4) Two post-conference field trips will occur, one to local sites and one to the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology.

39. SOUTHEASTERN DIVISION

Submitted by A. Floyd Scott, Secretary/Treasurer

Southeastern Division, Association of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists

The 1995 meetings were held at the Holiday Inn Worlds Fair and Convention Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, 19-21 April, in conjunction with the Association of Southeastern Biologists (ASB). The University of Tennessee at Knoxville hosted the meetings, which included 27 papers in three ichthyology sessions and 11 papers in one herpetology session. Additional papers dealing directly or peripherally with fishes, amphibians, or reptiles were also presented in other sessions and as posters.

Six students attending the meetings applied for travel awards of $50 each and all were funded. They were Kyle R. Piller and David J. Eisenhour from Southern Illinois University; James W. Barron, Timothy R. Brophy, and Mark C. Turner from Marshall University, and Carol A. Britson from the University of Memphis. (Carol Britson was unable to attend the meeting and will return her award to the Secretary/Treasurer.) Fourteen students, five in herpetology and nine in ichthyology, competed for two Best Student Paper awards of $100 each. Judges included Ken Marion, Rebecca Pyles, Joseph Mitchell, Lynette Siebert, Julia Wade, and Paul Cupp in herpetology and Peggy Shute, Wayne Van Devender, David Etnier, Lonnie Shull, and Mary Freeman in ichthyology. The herpetology award went to James W. Barron of Marshall University for his paper (coauthored with Thomas K. Pauley) Natural history of the anurans in the Green Bottom Wildlife Management Area, Cabell County, West Virginia, with special consideration for Rana palustris and Rana pipiens. A tie in the ichthyology session resulted in the award being split between David J. Eisenhour, Southern Illinois University, and Bernard R. Kuhajda, University of Alabama. David s paper, titled Status and identification of the chunky madtom, Noturus (Rabida) sp. was coauthored with Brooks M. Burr and James M. Grady. Richard L. Mayden was coauthor of Bernard s paper, Discovery of a new species of snubnose darter (Percidae, Etheostoma) endemic to the Cumberland Plateau in Alabama.

The SEASIH annual business meeting was held on 21 April with President Wayne Van Devender presiding. The treasures s report for 1994-95 was presented by Secretary/Treasurer Floyd Scott. It showed a balance of $338.36 brought forward from 1994. Income (from voluntary dues and checking account interests) up to the time of the meeting was $294.90; expenditure (postage, checks, and travel awards) totaled 345.74. Anticipated expenditures following the meeting were $100.00 each for two Best Student Paper awards, leaving an end-of- the-year balance of $87.52.

As of the meeting date, the Southeastern Division had 79 active members (including 22 non-paying student members). Dues reminders for 1995 were mailed to around 100 Southeastern Division members, primarily those who had contributed in 1994. Dues received in 1994-1995 equaled exactly ($290) those received the previous year.

Minutes of the 1994 meeting (prepared by then Secretary/Treasurer Mary Freeman) were distributed by Secretary/Treasurer Scott for scrutiny by the members present. After a short period of discussion, a motion was made, seconded and passed approving the minutes as printed.

Under old business, President Van Devender reminded the membership that the Southeastern Division exists mainly to promote and support student research in our region. He noted that in 1995, only six of the 14 students presenting papers at the annual meeting applied for travel awards (all six were funded) and urged members to encourage their students to apply for both travel and best paper awards. Vice President Mary Freeman suggested that paying members consider contributing more than the minimum $5 dues to help fund additional students each year. President Van Devender announced that membership forms were available from the Secretary/Treasurer . A membership directory, promised last year, was distributed by Secretary/Treasurer Scott, who noted that student members had increased from eight to 22 over the past year.

Under new business, Vice President Freeman nominated Carol Johnston (U.S. Forest Service, Mississippi) as the next Secretary/Treasurer. As no other nominations were forthcoming, a motion was made to elected her by acclamation. The motion passed by a resounding affirmative voice vote. The question was asked if awards for travel and best papers would be given at the 1996 ASB meetings in Statesboro, Georgia, even though the SEASIH will not be officially meeting there. (SEASIH will, of course, be meeting with the ASIH in New Orleans in 1996). After a lengthy discussion on this topic, a motion was made by David Etnier that at the 1996 meeting with ASIH in New Orleans, and at all subsequent meetings with the parent organization, all student awards of the SEASIH should be travel awards that will go to student members presenting either a paper or poster as senior author, and that the funds normally used for best paper awards be incorporated into these travel awards. The motion was seconded, and after some clarification and discussion, was passed by voice vote.

Before adjourning, the membership was reminded of the following upcoming meetings: ASIH in Edmonton, Alberta, 15-19 of June 1995; SSAR meetings in Boone, North Carolina, 8-13 August, 1995; the Gopher Tortoise Council Meetings at FT. Gaines, Georgia, 13 and 14 October 1995, and the 1996 ASIH meetings in New Orleans. Member Chris Thompson suggested that anyone interested in holding a symposium at the 1996 ASIH meetings should contact its organizers right away, as the deadline for inclusion is very near.

Appendix 1. Attachments to the Report of the Treasurer

Appendix 2. Attachment to the Report of the Long Range Planning and Finance Committee

Appendix 3. Attachment to the Report of the Representative to the American Fisheries Society

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