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Great Smoky Mountains Science Colloquium Coming March 23

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By Kurt Repanshek - March 7th, 2017

A colloquium coming later this month will examine a variety of natural resource topics dear to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, ranging from salamanders in the park to bats and climate change.

Hosted by Discover Life in America and the National Park Service, the Great Smoky Mountains Science Colloquium is an annual event that highlights the research, conservation, and education efforts being made to understand, manage, and restore the unique biological diversity in Great Smoky Mountains and beyond. The colloquim will be held at the Glenstone Lodge in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, on March 23 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It's free and open to the public.

Scientists consider the park to be one of the most biodiverse locations in North America. In the midst of such species richness, DLIA conducts an ongoing project to inventory all species that exist in the park. The All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory seeks to catalog the estimated 60,000-80,000 species living in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The project continues to develop reports, maps, databases, GIS tools, and natural history profiles that describe the biology of this rich landscape. These tools enhance park management and provide information to a wide audience in an effort to promote science and conservation of biodiversity.

Research partners will present at the annual GSMNP Science Colloquium on a variety of topics of research in the park. These may include:

  • Wildlife diseases
  • Salamanders
  • Weather, especially precipitation
  • Louisiana Waterthrush
  • Climate and vegetation change
  • Bats
  • Black bears and wildfire

Those interested in volunteering with DLIA can stay afterwards for a short reception about upcoming opportunities. For more information, call 865-430-4757 or visit DLIA's website. 

DLIA’s mission is to discover and understand America’s species through science and education for conservation. DLIA’s flagship project, the ATBI, is a joint effort with the National Park Service to identify and record every species in the park. To date, DLIA has assisted in adding more than 9,140 species to the park’s records and 979 new to science.

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