ORNITOLOGIA NEOTROPICAL 13: 221–224, 2002 © The Neotropical Ornithological Society NEWS—NOTICIAS—NOTÍCIAS VIIth NEOTROPICAL ORNITHOLOGICAL CONGRESS Dates. – The VIIth Neotropical Ornitholog- although they know a few English words and ical Congress will take place from Sunday, attempts to communicate by non-Spanish 5 October through Saturday 11 October speakers will result in a meaningful exchange. 2003. Working days will be Monday 6, Puerto Varas has several outstanding restau- Tuesday 7, Wednesday 8, Friday 10, and rants (including sea food, several more ethnic Saturday 11 October 2003. Thursday 9 kinds of food, and, of course, Chilean fare). October 2003 will be a congress free day. In spite of its small size, Puerto Varas is quite After the last working session on Saturday 11 a cosmopolitan town, with a well-marked October, the congress will end with a ban- European influence. There are shops, bou- quet, followed by traditional Chilean music tiques, and other stores, including sporting and dance. goods stores. Congress participants will be able to choose from a variety of lodging alter- Venue. – Congress Center, in Puerto Varas, natives, ranging from luxury five-star estab- Xth Region, Chile (about 10 km N of Puerto lishments to ultra-economical hostels. Montt, an easy to reach and well-known Because our meeting will be during the “off ” travel destination in Chile. The Congress Cen- season for tourists, participants will be able to ter, with its meeting rooms and related facili- enjoy the town’s tourist-wise facilities and ties, perched on a hill overlooking Puerto amenities (e.g., the several cybercafes, compet- Varas, is only an 800-m walk from downtown itive money exchange businesses, and the where participants will lodge and dine in their many local tour offerings) without paying typ- selection of hotels, hostels, and eating facili- ical tourist prices. ties. Puerto Varas is only 18 km from Puerto Montt's El Tepual Airport, a modern facility Host City. – Puerto Varas is a small, friendly, with several daily flights to and from Santiago, and picturesque city of about 35,000 people Chile's capital, only about 1 h and a half away. nestled along the shores of Lake Llanquihue Several car rental companies operate offices at in Chile's beautiful Lake District. The the airport. Puerto Montt, the nearest large spectacular Volcanoes Osorno (2652 m) city, with about 150,000 people, is only 10 km and Calbuco (2015 m) can be seen across away by a new divided highway. Public bus the Lake from the city and the Congress service between Puerto Montt and Puerto Center. Puerto Varas has a wide range Varas is frequent, convenient, and cheap. The of accommodations, from modest hos- administrative seat of Chile's Xth Region, pedajes to luxurious 5-star hotels; it has Puerto Montt has excellent hospital facilities, seven banks (obtaining money from many shops, banks, and restaurants. Its water- your home bank is very easy through conve- front faces the beautiful Seno de Reloncaví, niently located ATM's). Most residents speak the northernmost point of the famous Chil- only Spanish, or Spanish and German, ean channels, with a grand backdrop of snow 221 NEWS—NOTICIAS—NOTÍCIAS capped Andean peaks. Puerto Montt's harbor, Co-chairs of the Scientific Program Angelmo, is the place to visit for local and Committee: superbly fresh seafood, and shops that sell a Jaime Jiménez, [email protected] great assortment of locally knit woollens and Cristina Y. Miyaki, [email protected] leather objects. Early October is spring in the Proceedings Committee: Lakes District of Chile, and plants blossom Editor: Raymond McNeil, Raymond. everywhere in the mild weather. Much of the [email protected] lushness of southern Chile is due to its rain- Assistant to the Editor: Ivan Lazo, bubo fall, and so you might expect occasional @entelchile.net showers. A raincoat and jacket are recom- mended. For those interested in becoming Scientific Program. – The scientific pro- acquainted with the area’s geography, people, gram will include plenary lectures, concurrent and natural history, we will provide a list of symposia sessions, oral papers, poster ses- books, maps, other publications, and relevant sions, and round-table discussions. In addi- web sites on our Congress Meeting web page tion, special evening sessions with talks and (under construction). A thorough and reputa- films are planned. Details about the Scientific ble tour book (in Spanish) for Chile that we Program will be announced in future issues of recommend is TurisTel 2001 (or 2002) Chile, Ornitología Neotropical, in the NOS webpage ISBN [for the 2001 edition] 956-7264-70-8, (http://www.neotropicalornithology.org), and in the published and distributed by Turismo y VIIth Neotropical Ornithological Congress Comunicaciones, S.A., Av. Santa Maria 0120, webpage (the webpage address will appear in Providencia, Santiago, Chile; e-mail: info@ the next issue of Ornitología Neotropical). turistel.cl. Proceedings. – The proceedings of the VII Congress Languages. – English and Span- Neotropical Ornithological Congress will be ish will be the working languages of the con- published after the congress as a special issue gress. Translators will be provided for most, if or supplement of Ornitología Neotropical. This not all sessions. publication will be peer-reviewed and edited (see Proceedings Committee, above) and will Organization. – The VIIth Neotropical include the full texts of the plenary lectures Ornithological Congress of the Neotropical and of the symposia papers. Ornithological Society will be held in con- junction with the VIIth Congreso Chileno de Ornithological Tours. – Tours of ornitho- Ornitología of the Unión de Ornitólogos de logical interest will be offered during the con- Chile (UNORCH). gress free day, Thursday 9 October 2003, in the environs of Puerto Varas (native forest, Neotropical Congress Officers lake, estuarine, wetland, and seashore habi- tats). Highlights might include Podiceps major, President: François Vuilleumier, vuill@ Spheniscus magellanicus, Theristicus caudatus, Mer- amnh.org ganetta armata, Rallus sanguinolentus, Limosa hae- Secretary general: Luis Espinosa G., mastica, Sterna trudeaui, Columba araucana, [email protected] & [email protected] Enicognathus ferrugineus, Colaptes pitius, Cinclodes Congress Organizer for North America: patagonicus, Sylviorthorhynchus desmursii, Aphras- M. Vickie McDonald, [email protected]. tura spinicauda (the emblematic species on the edu & [email protected] cover of Ornitología Neotropical), Scelorchilus 222 NEWS—NOTICIAS—NOTÍCIAS rubecula, Phytotoma rara, and Phrygilus patagoni- gayi). Details about these excursions will be cus. A variety of Pre- and Post-congress published at a later date. Tours, each 3-5 days in duration, will be offered to allow congress participants to Official Host. – The host organization in enjoy a wide array of habitats and birds in Chile is the Unión de Ornitólogios de Chile Chile, that 4000 km (2500 mile)-long country. (UNORCH), the national ornithological soci- These excursions will range from the Ata- ety of Chile. Founded in 1987, it was incorpo- cama desert and high Andes in the far north rated as a non-profit organization under (hoping to see species such as Tinamotis pen- Chilean law in 1989. UNORCH promotes tlandii, Phoenicoparrus andinus and Phoenicoparrus the development of ornithological research in jamesi, Chloephaga melanoptera, Vultur gryphus, Chile, supports the conservation and protec- Fulica cornuta, Attagis gayi, Geositta punensis, tion of birds and their habitats, and diffuses Muscisaxicola albifrons, Conirostrum tamarugense, ornithological knowledge and education and Phrygilus atriceps), to the Patagonian throughout Chile. UNORCH publishes a steppe and Nothofagus forests of the archipe- journal, Boletín Chileno de Ornitología, which lagic zone of the far south (with such birds as includes the results of scientific research on Pterocnemia pennata, Diomedea melanophris, Ful- Chilean birds, and a newsletter, Boletín Infor- marus glacialoides, Pelecanoides magellani, Chloe- mativo, which includes ornithological news phaga hybrida, Tachyeres patachonicus, Pluvianellus and information about events and publica- socialis, Geositta antarctica, and Sicalis lebruni), tions on the birds of Chile and other parts of including the central area with its Mediterra- South America. Street address is: UNORCH, nean-type climate (with the possibility of Avenida Providencia 1108, Local 32, Provi- sighting Phegornis mitchellii, Chilia melanura, dencia, Santiago, Chile; mailing address: Pteroptochos megapodius, Scelorchilus albicollis, UNORCH, Casilla 13.183, Santiago-21, Tachuris rubrigastra, Mimus thenca, and Phrygilus Chile; E-mail: [email protected]. THE NEOTROPICAL ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY FUNDS The Neotropical Ornithological Society has thological Society Treasurer, Joe Meyers, at: three different funds. Each of them has a spe- [email protected]. uga.edu. cific purpose. All members of the NOS are strongly urged to donate even a small amount The Goelet Student Fund. – The Goelet of money to one or more of these funds, for Student Fund was established at the VIth example when they renew their subscription Neotropical Congress in Monterrey, Mexico, for the year 2001. Remember that your dona- in October 1999, with a sum of US$5000 in tions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed seed money donated by our benefactors Mr. by US law; NOS is a non-profit organization. and Mrs. Robert Goelet of New York City. Donations