Dear MARMAMers, If you are attending the World Marine Mammal Conference in Barcelona in December 2019 you might want to know about 2 distance sampling-related workshops, in the morning and afternoon of December 7th. You can sign up as part of registration (or as an add-on to your registration if you've registered already), see https://www.wmmconference.org/. Details about both workshops can be found below and more information, including how to register, on the link above. On behalf of the Distance Sampling workshop’s team, maybe see you in Barcelona 😉 Tiago Marques Distance sampling surveys of marine mammal density and abundance: from introductory ideas to latest developments December 7th 08:30-12:30 The goal of this workshop is to introduce the latest developments in distance sampling methods and software of particularly relevance to marine mammal scientists. Distance sampling surveys, particularly line transects, are widely used to estimate marine mammal population density and abundance. We will begin by introducing the basic ideas, and then describe how these have been extended to allow: spatial density surface and habitat modelling, passive acoustic density estimation, incorporation of animal movement, long dive times. We will demonstrate the Windows software and latest R-based software packages. At the end of the session, we will divide into groups and discuss topics suggested by workshop participants, as well as priorities for future methods and software development. This workshop is suitable both for complete beginners interested in getting a jump-start on methods for estimating marine mammal density and abundance, as well as seasoned distance sampling practitioners wanting to hear what’s new. Advancing marine species density surface modelling with a focus on extrapolation December 7th 13:30-17:30 Density surface models attempt to describe animal distribution as a function of spatially referenced variables. Data typically come from visual line transect surveys, though other effort-indexed methods (i.e., passive acoustics) are emerging. Outputs include modelled relationships between density and explanatory variables, maps of population density, and stratified estimates of population size with uncertainty. These are of practical use for marine spatial planning and impact assessment. Many statistical approaches are available for density surface modeling. This half-day workshop is being proposed by those involved with the LMR-funded research project, DenMod, that aims to compare the different density surface modelling approaches, identifying common ground and outstanding issues. The workshop will provide participants with progress updates on the priority research areas agreed at the workshop in Halifax 2017. In particular, this workshop will focus on extrapolation of density surface models beyond collected data (when it can be done and how to assess it). We will also present an online resource for common questions and practical problems that researchers encounter when using density surface models. The workshop will consist of a series of short presentations by the DenMod project team on key topics, with a particular focus on extrapolation. We will allow plenty of time for open discussion following the presentations. A report summarising the workshop will be sent to all participants as well as being posted on the project website – https://synergy.st-andrews.ac.uk/denmod/ The report of the workshop held in Halifax can also be found here. __________________________________________ Tiago André Marques email (St Andrews): tiago.marques at st.andrews.ac.uk email (FCUL): tamarques at ciencias.ulisboa.pt email (personal): tiagoandremarques at gmail.com Mobile (personal): 00351919651628 Twitter: @TiagoALOMarques Skype: talomar __________________________________________ Google Scholar SHqH7fMAAAAJ ORCID 0000-0002-2581-1972 ResearcherID A-5530-2010 Scopus ID 6603703024 __________________________________________ University of St Andrews Senior Research Fellow School of Mathematics and Statistics Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling The Observatory, Buchanan Gardens, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9LZ, Scotland Phone: 00441334461842 Fax: 00441334461800 The University of St Andrews is a charity registered in Scotland : No SC013532 http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/profile/tam2 __________________________________________ Universidade de Lisboa Professor Auxiliar Convidado Departamento de Biologia Animal Centro de Estatística e Aplicações Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa Bloco C6, Piso 4, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, PORTUGAL FCUL: 00351217500170 (my usual office) https://ciencias.ulisboa.pt/pt/perfil/tamarques __________________________________________