STRI news
 Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panam?        www.stri.org     October 24, 2003
E-mail chat from
STRI to thousands
of students
STRI scientist Stanley Heckadon, director
of the Office of Communications and
Public Programs, participated in a 90-
minute e-mail chat, with US school kids
participating in the JASON project, on
Thursday, October 16. Students from
Panama?s Balboa Academy also
participated. The kids sent over 1,100
questions to JASON headquarters in
Boston, and Heckadon answered by
phone from Panama. According to
JASON coordinators, the chat beat all
their previous participation records. The
students were interested in knowing
everything about STRI, Panama, its
people, culture, languages and of course,
the Canal. Heckadon emphasized on
Panama?s biodiversity, the different
cultures and the tolerance between its
groups, and described how building the
Panama Canal allowed for a revolution in
tropical medicine. ?Peoples living in the
forest are poor only in a material sense? he commented. ?A young Embera boy learns very quickly
while in elementary school how to build a house, a dugout canoe, a paddle and young girls will
know how to make lovely baskets which are made from forest products like palms. In that sense
they are more mature than people in urban areas.? Upcoming chats include Arturo Lindsay, Roland
Kays, Randy Morgan, Elisabeth Kalko, Jackie Willis, Roland Smith, Meg Lowman, Mark Wishnie,
Mike Kaspari and Robert Stallard, president of the JASON Project. This week, Panama?s Ministry
of Education formally accepted the JASON study guide as part of the national curriculum.
El cient?fico Stanley Heckadon, director de la Oficina de Comunicaciones y Programas P?blicos de
STRI, particip? en una charla de 90 minutos por correo electr?nico, con estudiantes de los Estados
Unidos que participan en el Proyecto JASON, el jueves, 16 de octubre. Estudiantes de Balboa
Academy de Panam? tambi?n participaron. Los estudiantes enviaron cerca de 1,100 preguntas a las
oficinas principales de JASON en Boston, y Heckadon las contestaba por tel?fono desde Panam?.
De acuerdo a los coordinadores de JASON, la conversaci?n rompi? todos sus r?cords anteriores de
participaci?n. Los estudiantes estaban interesados en saber todo sobre STRI, Panam?, su gente y
por supuesto, el Canal. Heckadon resalt? la biodiversidad de Panam?, sus diferentes culturas y la
tolerancia que existe entre ellos, y describi? c?mo la construcci?n del Canal dio paso a una
revoluci?n en medicina tropical. ?La gente que vive en el bosque es pobre s?lo desde un punto de
Tupper seminar
Tuesday, October 28, noon
seminar speaker will be
Dennis R. Rasmussen,
Panama's  Metropolitan
Nature Park, Primate Refuge
and Sanctuary of Panama,
Catholic University of Leuven,
Belgium, and University of
Panama 
Development of the
Primate Refuge and
Sanctuary of Panama as an
international resource for
research, education, and
conservation
Bambi seminar
Please check your GroupWise
and bulletin boards for
information on the next
Bambi.
Congratulations!
To Brice Quenouille who
successfully defended his
doctoral thesis Syst?matique
mol?culaire des poissons demoiselle
(Teleostei: Pomacentridae): diversit?
et biog?ographie en milieu marin
tropical  at the University of
Perpignan, France, on
September 18. His PhD
research was supported by
STRI in the Naos lab of
Eldredge Bermingham, juror
of the Brice?s doctoral thesis
and member of the PhD
committee.
Arrivals
Roland Kays, NY State
Museum, Oct 25 - Nov 21, to
continue research with the
automated telemetry project,
on BCI.
Juan Pablo Giraldo G?mez,
Universidad de Los Andes,
Oct 27 - Apr 27, 2004, to
work with Tom Kursar and
Melvin Tyree, on BCI.
vista material? coment?. ?Un joven Ember? aprende desde muy temprano en escuela primaria a
construir una casa, una canoa y un remo, y las ni?as aprenden a hacer bellas canastas de productos
del bosque, como palmas. En ese sentido son mucho m?s maduros que los que vivimos en ?reas
urbanas.?  Las pr?ximas charlas incluyen a Arturo Lindsay, Roland Kays, Randy Morgan, Elisabeth
Kalko, Jackie Willis, Roland Smith, Meg Lowman, Mark Wishnie, Mike Kaspari y Robert Stallard,
presidente del Proyecto JASON. Esta semana, el Ministerio de Educaci?n de Panam? acept?
formalmente la gu?a de estudio de JASON como parte del programa educativo nacional.
E.O. Wilson visit to the
canopy at Sherman
"This is how I imagine the ascent to heaven", said
Edward O. Wilson describing his slow, graceful lift
by STRI's canopy-access crane through the trees of
the lowland tropical rainforest along Panama's
Caribbean slope at Fort Sherman. Wilson,
Pellegrino professor emeritus at Harvard University
and a world authority on ants and the conservation
of biodiversity, is pictured above the trees in the
gondola of the the canopy crane where he spent
the morning of Sunday, October 12, investigating
canopy ants with Bruno Corbara, Radeau des Cimes
scientific director of missions. Corbara, also an
authority on ants, is visiting the Smithsonian's
Tropical Research Institute, where he is co-
directing a three-week intensive biodiversity survey
of soil and canopy arthropods by 30 scientists from
ten countries. Frode Odegaard, a research scientist
with the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Norway and an expert on canopy arthropod
diversity, and Eldredge Bermingham, STRI staff scientist and deputy director, also accompanied
professor Wilson on his exploration of the canopy.
"As? es como imagino el ascenso al cielo? dijo Edward O. Wilson, mientras se elevaba lenta y
f?cilmente entre los ?rboles del bosque lluvioso tropical de tierras bajas a lo largo de la costa
caribe?a de Panam? en la gr?a del dosel de STRI en Sherman. Wilson, profesor Pellerino em?rito
de la Universidad de Harvard, y una autoridad mundial en hormigas y la conservaci?n de la
biodiversidad, aparece arriba de los ?rboles en la g?ndola del sistema de acceso al dosel, donde pas?
la ma?ana del domingo 12 de octubre, investigando hormigas del dosel con Bruno Corbara,
director cient?fico de misiones de Radeau des Cimes. Corbara, quien tambi?n es una autoridad en
hormigas, visita STRI, donde est? co-dirigiendo un censo intensivo  de la biodiversidad de
artr?podos del suelo y el dosel, con 30 cient?ficos provenientes de 10 pa?ses. Frode Odegaard,
cient?fico de investigaciones del Instituto Noruego de Investigaciones de la Naturaleza, y experto en
diversidad de artr?podos del dosel, y Eldredge Bermingham, cient?fico y subdirector de STRI,
tambi?n acompa?aron al profesor Wilson en su viaje exploratorio al dosel.
$3.44 million to ICBG
Fogarty International Institute of the National
Institutes of Health awarded $3.44 million to
Panama International Cooperative Groups (ICBG)
for the proposal ?Bioassay and Ecology directed
drug discovery in Panama?. Of the 32 applications,
the proposal from Panama ICBG received the
highest ranking. Bill Gerwick from Oregon State
University is the principal investigator for the
program. Gerwick is a marine natural products
chemist who specializes in the isolation of
biologically active compounds from cyanobacteria
and the isolation of the genetic pathways
responsible for their synthesis. The program is
More arrivals
Juan Pablo Giraldo G?mez,
Universidad de Los Andes,
Oct 27 - Apr 27, 2004, to work
with Tom Kursar and Melvin
Tyree, on BCI.
Anna Herdina, University of
Vienna, Austria, Oct 28 - Dec
3, to work with Christoph
Meyer, on BCI.
Angela Skeeles, University of
Virginia, Oct 30 - Nov 9, to
work with Roland Kays on the
interactions between ocelots
and their prey, on BCI.
Heinrich Krause, research
associate from the University
of Dusseldorf, Germany, Oct
30 - Dec 11, to study photo
inhibition of photosynthesis in
leaves of tropical plants, at
Tupper.
New publications
Banks, Alexander N., and
Srygley, Robert B. 2003.
"Orientation by magnetic field
in leaf-cutter ants, Atta
colombica (Hymenoptera:
Formicidae)." Ethology 109(10):
835-846.
Eltz, Thomas, Roubik, David
W., and Whitten, Mark W.
2003. "Fragances, male display
and mating behaviour of
Euglossa hemichlora: A flight
cage experiment." Physiological
Entomology 28: 1-10.
Fortunato, Helena M. 2003.
"Evolutionary paleontology
and informatics: the Neogene
Marine Biota of Tropical
America (NMITA) database."
In A. Legakis, S.
Stenthourakis, R. Polymeni,
and M. Thessalou-Legaki
(Eds.), The new panorama of
animal evoltuion. Proceedings of the
18th Internacional Congress of
Zoology: 591-601. Moscow:
Pensoft Publishers.
divided into Central Operations and four associate programs. Central Operations, responsible for
Panama-based coordination, is run by STRI research associate Todd Capson. Associate programs:
?Panama plant collection and extraction and database management? is led by STRI research
associate Phyllis Coley; ?Assessment of bioactivity against parasites (malaria, leishmaniasis, Chagas?
disease), cancer and agricultural pests? is led by Eduardo Ortega, STRI research associate and
scientist at INDICASAT; ?Isolation and structure elucidation of Panama plant bioactives? is led
by Bill Gerwick; and ?Conservation, outreach and biodiversity inventory in Panama? is led by
Todd Capson (its primary focus will be the Coiba National Park. Industrial collaborators include
Novartis Pharmaceuticals and Dow Agrosciece. The program will continue to stress the training of
local students and investments in scientific infrastructure in Panama.
El Instituto Internacional Fogarty de los Institutos Nacionales de Salud de los Estados Unidos le
otorgaron $3.44 millones a los Grupos Internacional de Cooperaci?n para la Biodiversidad (ICBG)
de Panam? por la propuesta ?Bioensayo y descubrimiento de drogas ecol?gicamente dirigido en
Panama?. De las 32 aplicaciones, la propuesta de ICBG de Panam? recibi? el puntaje m?s alto. Bill
Gerwick, de Oregon State University ser? el investigador principal del programa. Gerwick es un
qu?mico de productos naturales marinos que se especializa en aislar compuestos biol?gicamente
activos de cianobacterias y en aislamiento de procesos gen?ticos responsables por su s?ntesis. El
programa se divide en Operaciones Centrales y cuatro programas asociados. Operaciones
Centrales, responsable por la coordinaci?n de Panam? estar? a cargo del investigador asociado a
STRI, Todd Capson. Los programas asociados: ?Colectas de plantas de Panam?, extracci?n y
manejo de base de datos? estar? a cargo de la investigadora asociada a STRI Phyllis Colley;.
?Estudios de bioactividad contra par?sitos (malaria, leishmaniasis, enfermedad de Chagas) c?ncer y
pestes de la agricultura? estar? a cargo de Eduardo Ortega, investigador asociado a STRI y
cient?fico de INDICASAT; ?Aislamiento y estructura de elucidaci?n de plantas bioactivas de
Panam?? estar? a cargo de Bill Gerwick; y ?Conservaci?n, extensi?n e inventario de biodiversidad
en Panam?? ser? dirigido by Todd Capson (su enfoque principal ser? el Parque Nacional de
Coiba). Los colaboradores industriales incluyen a Novartis Pharmaceuticals y Dow Agrosciece. El
programa continuar? d?ndole prioridad al entrenamiento de estudiantes locales y las inversiones en
infraestructura cient?fica en Panam?.
Oil painting exhibit at Tupper
STRI and the University of
Panama inaugurated an oil
painting exhibit at the Tupper
Center, on Thursday, October
16. The paintings feature
Panama's Metropolitan
Natural Park, seen through the
eyes of the artists. It will be
open to the public 9am to 4pm
until Friday, October 31.
Everybody is invited.
STRI y la Universidad de
Panam? inauguraron una
exhibici?n de ?leos en el
Centro Tupper, el jueves, 16
de octubre. Las pinturas
muestran el Parque Natural
Metropolitano, desde el punto de vista de los artistas. Se mantendr? abierta al p?blico de 9am a
4pm hasta el viernes, 31 de octubre. Todos est?n invitados.
Apartment for rent:
Three bed/r, 4 bath/r, balcony, recreational
area, Av. Balboa, beautiful view of bay, $ 1,200.
Call Clara Peixoto De Souza at 265-2061.
Se alquila apartamento de 3 rec?maras, 4
ba?os, balc?n, ?rea recreativa, en la Avenida
Balboa. Bella vista de la Bah?a, $1200.
Interesados favor llamar a Clara Peixoto De
Souza al tel. 265-2061.
More publications
Fortunato, Helena M. 2003.
"Habitat change and
biodiversity maintenance: two
faces of the same process?, 38th
Europena Marine Biology Sympo-
sium: Abstract book/Programme:
38. Aveiro, Portugal.
Fortunato, Helena M. 2003.
"Biogeography and the tempo
of speciation in strombinid gas-
tropods, XVIII Encontro
Brasileiro de Malacologia: 259. Rio
de Janeiro: Sociedade Brasileira
de Malacologia.
Guzman, Hector M. 2003. "Ca-
ribbean coral reefs of Panama:
present status and future per-
spectives." In Jorge Cortes
(Ed.), Latin American Coral Reefs:
241-274. Amsterdam: Elsevier
Science B.V.
Kursar, Thomas A., and Coley,
Phyllis D. 2003. "Convergence
in defense syndromes of young
leaves in tropical rainforests."
Biochemical Systematics and Ecology
31(8): 929-949.
Laube, S., and Zotz, Gerhard.
2003. "Which abiotic factors
limit vegetative growth in a vas-
cular epiphyte?" Functional Ecol-
ogy 17(5): 598-604.
McCartney, Michael A., Ace-
vedo, Jenny, Heredia, Christine,
Rico, Ciro, Quenouille, Brice,
Bermingham, Eldredge P., and
McMillan, W. Owen. 2003.
"Genetic mosaic in a marine
species flock." Molecular Ecology
12(11): 2963?2973.
Novick, Rachel Roth, Dick,
Christopher W., Lemes,
Maristerra R., Navarro, Carlos,
Caccone, Adalgisa, and
Bermingham, Eldredge P. 2003.
"Genetic structure of
Mesoamerican populations of
Big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia
macrophylla) inferred from
microsatellite analysis." Molecu-
lar Ecology 12(11): 2885?2893.