PCSGA Home

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

64th Annual Shellfish Conference

Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association

National Shellfisheries Association - Pacific Coast Section

September 20 - 23, 2010
Tacoma, Washington

DEADLINES:
May 14, 2010 - Click on www.pcsga.org/abstracts to register and submit your full abstract.

  • August 27, 2010 - Register for conference by August 27 to receive early bird discount rates.
August 27, 2010 - To guarantee a room at the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, call 206-238-8000.  
                           Reserve your room before August 27 to receive group discount rates.
    

The Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association and the National Shellfisheries Association – Pacific Coast Section invite submissions of abstracts for oral presentations at the 2010 Annual Shellfish Conference, September 20 - 23, 2010 at the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Washington. Conference attendees include shellfish growers, suppliers, service providers, researchers, academicians, government agencies, environmental organizations and students. Abstracts addressing the topics identified below are welcome.  The topics identified here are not intended to be exhaustive, and abstracts on additional research topics will be considered.

Selected Session Topics and Abstract Examples:

Emerging Markets

·New species

·Foreign products

·Illegal importation and enforcement issues

Marketing

·Oyster appellations

·Environmental certification

Invasive and Exotics

·Burrowing Shrimp

·Spartina

·Zebra Mussels

·Tunicates

·Varnish Clams

·Invasive Drills

·Japonica

Climate Change Impacts on Shellfish Production

Shellfish Aquaculture Interactions with Marine Habitat

Genetics

Restoration

·Native Species

·Habitat/Water Quality

·Shellfish Growing Areas

Hatchery

·Broodstock

·Seed Supply – wild and hatchery issues, solutions

·Vibrio tubiashii

Disease/Mortality/Pathogens

·Emerging Monitoring Tools

·Vibrios

·Harmful Algal Blooms

Stock Assessment/Monitoring

·Crustaceans

·Abalone

·Sea Urchins

·Bivalves

Down on the Farm

·Processing equipment

·Technology

·Vessel issues

·New farming practices

·Regional challenges

·Setting stations and other wild set issues

·Kids in aquaculture

·Migrant labor issues

·Navigating local government

·Transportation challenges

Business Management

·Family close-held enterprises

·Insurance


Student Awards and Scholarships:

  • The Conference Advisory Committee invites undergraduate and graduate students to submit proposals for oral presentations on research projects to be evaluated by a panel of judges.  PCSGA will award scholarship(s) for “Best Applied Research.”  Go to the PCSGA website at www.pcsga.org or call 360-754-2744 for more information.  In addition, NSA-PCS will present awards for the best undergraduate and graduate student presentations at the conference.  If you are a student and wish to be considered for either of these awards, please state your interest by checking the box on the Abstract Submission Form.  Student presenters must be enrolled in an accredited post-secondary institution at the time that your proposal is submitted to be considered for an award.


Student Financial Assistance:

Financial assistance is available to student contributors through the Ken Chew Student Endowment Fund, which helps to cover lodging, travel expenses, conference registration, abstract fees and banquet tickets.  Students requiring financial assistance should submit a request with their abstract.  Questions regarding student financial assistance may be directed to Chris Whitehead at cwhitehead@jamestowntribe.org
 or 360-681-4630.


Submission Instructions:

  1. Completed abstracts are due May 14, 2010.  Submit your abstract title online at www.pcsga.org/abstracts.
  2. All presenters must submit their abstract online in the required format.
  3. Presentations should be in PowerPoint.  Please bring a back up copy of your presentation on  a separate storage device such as a CD-ROM or a USB flash media drive.
  4. Time allowed for presentations is 15 minutes plus 5 minutes for discussion (20 minutes total). 
  5. Cancellation:  If you are not able to give your scheduled presentation, you must find a substitute to present your abstract and notify the conference personnel immediately.
  6. Presenters must register for the conference if they plan to attend sessions other than their own.
  7. If your presentation is based upon a scientific paper and you desire to have your abstract published in the Journal of Shellfish Research, please indicate so on the Abstract Submission Form and include a $50 (U.S) abstract fee to cover Journal publishing costs, made payable to “NSA-PCS.”

Instructions for Abstracts:

  1. Title of Paper:  The abstract title should be CAPITALIZED, with the exception of scientific names, which should be upper/lower case.
  2. Authors: List all authors.  Last names should be capitalized.  Put an asterisk (*) following the presenting author's last name.
  3. Include institution, school or other affiliation.
  4. Paragraphs should be separated by a blank line and should not be indented.
  5. Use 12-point Times New Roman font.  No bold typeface.  Abbreviations should only be used after first spelling the word out in full with the abbreviation in parentheses. 

Abstracts will appear in the program exactly as typed, so check your spelling, wording, etc.  See abstract format example below:

ABSTRACT FORMAT EXAMPLE:

REPRODUCTIVE CYCLE OF MERCENARIA MERCENARIA IN A SOUTH CAROLINA ESTUARY

Arnold G. EVERSOLE*, W.K. MITCHNER.  Department of Entomology and Economic Zoology, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29631.
Peter J. ELDRIDGE.  Marine Research Institute, Charleston, SC 29412.

Hatchery seed of Mercenaria mercenaria planted at two tidal locations and at three clam densities were sampled over a 3-year period.  Gonadal development was determined histopathologically and related to clam size and experimental treatments.  Male gametogenesis preceded female development and a 9.5:1.0 male-to-female sex ratio occurred during the first year of the experiment. 

Shell length, tissue wet weight, and internal shell volume varied significantly between sexes and development stages of clams.  Females were larger, weighed more, and had more space within the shell than males.  No histological differences were detected between clams from different densities or tidal locations.  Age, size, and sex relationships to gonadal development are presented with a discussion of seasonal gonadal changes.