The Tully Auditorium in Thompson Hall of Mississippi State University was the location of the 8th Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Bat Diversity Network (SBDN) and 13th Annual Meeting on Conservation of Mammals in the Southeastern United States.

The meetings were hosted by Bruce Leopold (left), Professor and Department Head of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries at Mississippi State University, and Darren Miller (right), Southern Wildlife Project Manager of Weyerhaeuser Company.

A social at the Holiday Inn Express in Starkville, MS on the night of the 20th provided an opportunity for visiting with colleagues and for interactions among students and professionals. At the SBDN meeting, there was a panel discussion on Development and Analysis of Habitat Data for Forest Bats. This included presentations on what information is needed from habitat selection studies of bats (Dan Taylor, BCI), The need for scientific rigor in habitat studies (Mike Lacki, University of Kentucky, presented by Darren Miller), design considerations for radiotelemetry studies (Wes Burger, Mississippi State University), and using euclidean distances in habitat studies of bats (Mike Conner, Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center, presented by Darren Miller). On the 21st there were 32 oral and 7 poster presentations. Concurrent sessions were used for the oral presentations. A Program was given to each attendee which included abstracts from the posters and presentations.

Karen E. Francl, a Ph.D. Candidate in the Warnell School of Forest Resources at the University of Georgia, receives the Best Student Paper award from Dr. Leopold. Her presentation was entitled "Genetic relationships of meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) populations in central Appalachian wetlands". Karen received her B.S. from the University of Notre Dame, her M.S. from the University of Oklahoma, and is currently completing her Ph.D. at the University of Georgia. Her Ph.D. research is an examination of floral and faunal characteristics of high elevation bogs in the central Appalachians.

Eight members of the SBDN Board of Directors met prior to the SBDN meeting on 20 February 2003. Pictured at the conclusion of the Board meeting (from left to right): Troy Best, Auburn University, Auburn, AL; Jeff Gore, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Panama City, FL; Mary K. Clark, N. C. State Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC; Ben Wigley, NCASI, Clemson, SC; Bob Currie, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Asheville, NC; Dennis Krusac, U.S. Forest Service, Atlanta, GA; Mick Harvey, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN; David A. Saugey, U.S. Forest Service, Jessieville, AR. Two Board members were unable to attend, Mike Lacki, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY and J.D. Wilhide, Arkansas State University, AR