ATBC 2008 - Theme

ATBC

"We still have a lot to learn,
but we know enough to make a start"

David Kaimowitz and Douglas Sheil, Biotropica, Volume 39 (5) 567-574

America, Africa, Asia and Australia separated from around 150-100 million years ago on the break-up of Gondwana. On each continent, the flora and fauna followed a largely separate evolutionary trajectory (Bermingham et al., 2005; Primack & Corlett, 2005). Meanwhile, however, trans-continental plant and animal migrations occurred between Africa and Australia, then between Africa to America, and lately between Asia and Australia. These migrations have introduced more shared, modern elements in these communities that got separated so long ago. Most recently, the great interchange between North and South America (ca. 3 Millions Years Before Present) profoundly altered the composition of neotropical fauna, and flora. Climate change at a continental scale also contributed to colonization by novel plants in “terra incognita”, facilitated by new as well as old seed dispersers.

When we gather in Suriname in 2008, we will be able to enjoy the diversity of life of tropical South America, more specifically the lowland rainforest flora and fauna of the Guiana Shield, one of the largest ancient and stable areas in Amazonia.

In our Modern age, i.e. less 10.000 Y BP (since the last Ice Age), the spread of humans across the planet resulted in several waves of colonizations of the tropics. Suriname, not unlike other territories  in the Americas, has received a diverse set of immigrants. The degree of diversity is however very high in Suriname, and highly visible : immigrants for Northern Asia first (the Indigenous or Amerindians), those from Europe and Africa second, then Indians, Indonesians, and "finally" the Chinese. Suriname has thus become a beautiful mosaic of culture as well as nature  !

What better location than Suriname for a meeting celebrating tropical diversity ?

While the human diversity thrives, the natural diversity is threatened by current human activities and climate change. It’s time to consider the future of our natural heritage, and whether we can learn enough today for the long-term conservation of this heritage.

Reference :


Tropical Rain Forests: An Ecological and Biogeographical Comparison by Richard B. Primack and Richard Corlett, Blackwell Publishing., 2005.

See also. Corlett, R. and R. Primack. 2006. Tropical rainforests and the need for cross-continental comparisons. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 21: 104-110.

Blackwell publishes the Journal of the ATBC BIOTROPICA

 


Tropical Rainforests: Past, Present, and Future edited by Bermingham, Eldredge, Christopher W. Dick, and Craig Moritz,The University of Chicago press, 2005.

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