Dear Colleagues,

 

The annual Raptor Research Foundation meeting  will be held in Boise, Idaho from October 4th through the 8^th this year. Katelyn Bishop and I felt like this would be a perfect opportunity to put together a symposium on the archaeology of raptor remains (see our symposium abstract below). More specifically, our goal is to showcase archaeological research on human/raptor relationships and (when possible) highlight how valuable archaeological data can be for raptor conservation and management. With this in mind, we would like to extend an invitation to you as a participant in this upcoming symposium. We have added you to this initial list because we believe your research experience in the area would add to the quality of the overall discussion on the value of archaeology to the study of raptors in general.

 

The abstracts for the conference are due on April 30, but please contact us as soon as possible if you are interested in participating. The conference organizers need to know how much time to allocate for the symposium. Additionally, if you can think of anyone who would be particularly interested in participating in this session that is not on the list, please do not hesitate to forward them this email and encourage them to contact either myself or Katelyn Bishop (cc’d here).

 

Additionally, if you need support traveling to this conference, we strongly suggest you apply to the “Wings to Fly” Travel Award as soon as possible. The deadline for international travelers is February 29 and for domestic travelers it is April 30. The organizers of the conference want to promote as much inclusivity as possible and have strongly urged us to urge you to apply for these travel funds. However, they did note that awards are considered on a “first come, fist served” basis. So, please do not hesitate to apply!

 

Thank you for your time, we’re looking forward to hearing from you!

 

Sincerely,

Jonathan Dombrosky and Katelyn Bishop

 

The Human/Raptor Interface in Archaeological Research and Its Multidisciplinary Potential

 

Co-Chairs: Jonathan Dombrosky and Katelyn J. Bishop

 

The archaeological record is an unparalleled source of information regarding the nature of human/raptor relationships through time and the environmental context in which these relationships occur across the globe. Presenters in this symposium highlight how the material traces of past humans and raptors relate to more anthropological topics such as the social organization, belief structure, behavior, and technology of past human groups. However, when possible, presenters also emphasize how their research can help with raptor conservation or how it reveals information about past raptor behavior, their ecological niches, or larger landscape histories. While archaeology is of interest to both public and academic audiences, this symposium explicitly seeks to showcase and engage biologists with archaeological perspectives to help facilitate multidisciplinary research on raptors in general. There is strong potential for archaeological research to situate present socio-environmental problems and guide decision-making, and this is especially the case when such problems relate to raptors considering the long coevolutionary history they have with humans.