Dear Marine Mammal Colleagues, We would like to invite you to a half-day workshop entitled "Dental and temporomandibular pathology in marine mammals" in association with the SMM Biennial Conference on Sunday, December 13th from 9:00am - 1:00pm. This workshop will be held at the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. Workshop participants will receive a behind-the-scenes tour of the scientific research collection and free admission to the museum. Below is a brief description of the workshop. More information can be found at the SMM conference website. Workshop Summary: This workshop will highlight recent research on dental and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pathology in several marine mammal species. Invited talks will cover pathologies found in pinnipeds, mustelids, and cetaceans. The use of museum specimens and fresh carcasses as research tools will be highlighted. This workshop will provide a unique insight into the current research being conducted on marine mammals as part of a collaborative effort between the University of California, Davis, the Marine Mammal Center, and the California Academy of Sciences. First, detailed characterization and documentation of dental and TMJ disorders conducted by board certified veterinary dentists and veterinary students using a large dry skull collection will be presented. This also includes dental radiography on selected studies. Second, we will highlight studies that are carried out on carcasses from stranded marine mammals. During these studies, tissue characterization that includes biomechanics, histologic, biochemical and electron microscopy are conducted to reveal the structure-function relationship of the TMJ. Workshop participants will be exposed to diagnosis of dental and TMJ disorders in marine mammals by experts in the field. Participants will also have an opportunity for hands-on examination of various dental pathologies in museum specimens. Workshop will be held at the California Academy of Sciences. This workshop would be limited to 50 people and will include tours of the CAS museum collection. Date and Time: December 13th, 2015, 9:00 am - 1:00 pm For further information and to register please go to the Society's website: https://www.marinemammalscience.org/conference/workshops/#dental If you have any questions about the workshop please feel free to contact us: Frank Verstrate (fjverstraete@ucdavis.edu<mailto:fjverstraete@ucdavis.edu>) Boaz Arzi (barzi@ucdavis.edu<mailto:barzi@ucdavis.edu>) Moe Flannery (mflannery@calacademy.org) Christine Fontaine (fontainec@tmmc.org<mailto:fontainec@tmmc.org>) Thanks, Frank, Boaz, Christine, and Moe Maureen Flannery Ornithology and Mammalogy Collection Manager California Academy of Sciences p. 415.379.5371 f. 415.379.5738 mflannery@calacademy.org<mailto:mflannery@calacademy.org> www.calacademy.org<http://www.calacademy.org/> 55 Music Concourse Drive Golden Gate Park San Francisco, CA 94118 Dive into the world of the ocean's mightiest and most mysterious mammals in our newest exhibit, Whales: Giants of the Deep. Now through November 29. Facebook<http://www.facebook.com/calacademy> | Twitter<https://twitter.com/calacademy>