“*Estimating Marine Mammal Abundance from Line Transect Surveys*” Workshop at *SOLAMAC*, 26th -27th November 2016, Valparaiso, Chile Dear Colleagues, We would like to invite you to participate in the upcoming workshop "*Estimating Marine Mammal Abundance from Line Transect Surveys*" to be held on the Latin American Society of Aquatic Mammal Experts (*SOLAMAC*) meeting in Valparaiso, Chile on the 26th and 27th of November 2016. The principal instructor will be Prof Philip Hammond (University of St Andrews) http://soi.st-andrews.ac.uk/staffProfile.aspx?sunID=psh2 This workshop will introduce participants to the methods used to estimate the abundance of marine mammals, especially cetaceans. Methodology will be presented in a statistical framework but the focus will be on practical application of the methods and analysis of the data, and on understanding and dealing with potential biases that arise from applying the methodology in practice. Participants will spend much of the time doing practical exercises and will learn to use the analytical software DISTANCE for line transect sampling analysis. On successful completion of the workshop, participants will be able to design, execute and analyse data from line transect surveys and understand how results can be used to inform conservation and management. More details about the program can be found at the website http://solamac2016.com/congress/estimating-marine- mammal-abundance-from-line-transect-surveys/ <http://solamac2016.com/congress/> *Registration deadline: 31th October 2016.* *Registration: *through the SOLAMAC website http://solamac2016.com/ congress/inscripciones/ <http://solamac2016.com/congress/> <http://solamac2016.com/congress/> *Price:* US$50 for students; US$70 for professionals For any further information, please contact us at (ncrm@st-andrews.ac.uk./ gabdo@st-andrews.ac.uk ) Looking forward to see you in Chile -- Nadya C. Ramirez-Martinez PhD Student Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) University of St. Andrews, Scotland M Sc. Eramus Mundus Marine Biodiversity and Conservation