In September

Charles Fleming Lecture: Science for conservation
Wednesday, 3 September, 8.00pm, C3 Lecture Theatre, University of Canterbury

Professor Mick Clout, Centre for Biodiversity and Biosecurity, University of Auckland

Invasive alien species now rank as one of the most serious threats to natural ecosystems and native species, worldwide. In isolated archipelagos such as New Zealand, invasive species may in fact be the most serious threat of all. This land was one of the last to be settled by humans and their associated cargo of invasive animals and plants, and we are still witnessing the impacts of consequent changes. Here, active conservation is necessary, involving direct intervention to aid the recovery of threatened species and to remove or reduce the threats of invasive species. This talk will use a series of examples, including research on kakapo, invasive mammals and island ecosystems to illustrate how ecological science can help with the practical business of conservation.

Mick's research interests are conservation biology, biodiversity effects of invasive species, bird-plant interactions and vertebrate ecology. Recent research projects: Ecology and mating behaviour of brushtail possums in the context of potential biocontrol of this pest; global threats to biodiversity caused by invasive species; frugivory and seed dispersal by New Zealand pigeons.

Tea, coffee, biscuits, etc., will be served after this lecture.

Hochstetter Lecture 2008: Learning from lahars: new insights from the March and September flows at Ruapehu
Wednesday, 24 September, 8.00pm, C3 Lecture Theatre, University of Canterbury

Dr Vern Manville, GNS Science (Wairakei Research Centre)

2007 was a remarkable year for lahars at Ruapehu, thanks to the long- awaited break-out of the summit Crater Lake in March, and the radically different eruption-generated flows in late September. A huge array of monitoring instruments had been installed beforehand as both warning systems and research arrays. These were backed up on the day by rapid-response observer and photography teams. The end result was compilation of the most complete and comprehensive data set on a single lahar event anywhere in the world. The quantity and quality of data collected in 2007 is challenging our assumptions about lahar behaviour and hazards at Ruapehu. Our findings are already informing improvements in systems for detecting and mitigating against future lahar hazards at Ruapehu, and overseas.

Vern's formal qualifications are from Oxford and Otago universities. He has been with GNS for 12 years, arriving the week of the onset of the 1995 Ruapehu eruption. He has consulted on volcanic hazards in New Zealand and overseas. He is a member of the GSNZ, AGU, IAHS, IAS, and IAVCEI, is a co-leader of the IAVCEI Commission on Volcanogenic Sediments, an associate editor of the journal Sedimentology, and a past editorial board member for Geology. His current research is focused on lahar hazards worldwide.

Tea, coffee, biscuits, etc., will be served after this lecture.

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Information on up-coming lectures can be found here

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