OASES PRESENTS:

Lemurs and Madagascar - Success and challenge

*Learn and be entertained by the stories of UVIC professor and researcher Dr. Lisa Gould and support the wildlife conservation efforts of one small village in Madagascar.

When: June 24, 2010. Thursday evening at 7:30pm

Where: Victoria Arts Connection, 110-2750 Quadra Street, (just north of Hillside).

Admission: $12.00 ea or two seats for $20.00

GUEST SPEAKERS:

Lisa Gould PhD, professor of Biological Anthropology/Primatology at UVIC will give a talk on some of her favourite creatures...lemurs.

Lemurs are found only on the island of Madagascar. Dr. Lisa Gould has been studying wild ring-tailed lemurs in the south of the island for the past 23 years. In this presentation, she will talk about the great diversity of lemur species (now more than 100) found throughout the remaining forests of Madagascar.

Dr. Gould will also describe a few brand new lemur species discovered just in the past few years, and speak about some recent serious conservation challenges in the northeast of the island. She will also describe a local conservation success story about a small forest reserve in the south containing a large population of ring-tailed lemurs, run entirely by a group of local villagers who, through their efforts and good forest management, now benefit greatly from eco-tourism. Dr. Gould and her graduate students began a project on ring-tailed lemur ecology and health at this site last summer, and she will return in July of this year to continue this research. Funds raised at this event will directly benefit the people of this community, and the lemurs and other wildlife that inhabit the local environment.