PALM BEACH ZOO KICKS OFF 2011-2012 CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP LECTURE SERIES WITH: “Tigers, Cougars and Jaguars: Lessons Learned and Getting it Right for Cat Conservation”

The Palm Beach Zoo has just announced its first Conservation Leadership Lecture for the 2011-2012 season.  Titled “Tigers, Cougars and Jaguars: Lessons Learned and Getting it Right for Cat Conservation” the lecture will feature Dr. Howard Quigley, Executive Director of Panthera’s Jaguar Program on Thursday, November 17, 2011 at The Breakers Palm Beach. 

Sponsored by Florida Crystals Corporation, the evening will include cocktails and hors’doeuvres at 6:00 PM followed by Dr. Howard Quigley’s lecture at 7:00 PM and coffee and sweets at 8:00 PM. 

Dr. Howard Quigley, Panthera’s Jaguar Program Director, focuses on the conservation of jaguars range-wide and the conservation of cougars in California and Wyoming. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Berkeley, his Master’s degree from the University of Tennessee, and his Doctorate from the University of Idaho. Before serving as President of the University of Idaho’s Hornocker Wildlife Institute, Dr. Quigley worked as an Assistant Professor for Frostburg State University within the University System of Maryland. After the Hornocker Wildlife Institute merged with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Dr. Quigley directed the WCS’s Global Carnivore Program. In 2002, he took on the role of Executive Director of Craighead Beringia South, a wildlife research and conservation organization based in Wyoming. Later, in 2009, Dr. Quigley joined Panthera in his current position.

Dr. Quigley’s work with carnivores has included field studies of giant pandas in China, Siberian tigers in the Russian Far East, cougars in central Idaho, and jaguars in the Brazilian Pantanal. Currently, Dr. Quigley heads the Teton Cougar Project in the southern Yellowstone ecosystem, a program that focuses on predator-prey interactions, cougar population dynamics, and cougar interactions with other large carnivores. In the latter aspect of his work, he coordinates with other scientists to examine the interactions of wolves, grizzly bears, cougars, and black bears. These data will be used to improve our understanding of carnivore “guilds” and to inform and develop long-term conservation and management plans for large carnivores. Dr. Quigley is also conducting a review and evaluation of cougar science and conservation efforts in the state of California.

In the 1970’s, Dr. Quigley and Dr. George Schaller, Panthera’s Vice President, began the world’s first comprehensive and ecological study of wild jaguars in the Brazilian Pantanal. Today, working from the bottom up with local communities and top down with political leaders and heads of national environmental agencies, Dr. Quigley now manages the world’s largest team of jaguar experts, with conservation projects in 13 of the 18 jaguar range states.

Dr. Quigley is a member of the I.U.C.N. Cat Specialist Group and consults on a variety of carnivore issues, including jaguar recovery in the U.S., cougar-human interactions, and jaguar-rancher conflicts in Latin America. Through his involvement with graduate committees at five universities, Dr. Quigley has helped graduate more than twenty graduate level students. In addition, Dr. Quigley is the author of more than thirty scientific publications and popular articles.

Seating is limited.  Please RSVP by Friday, November 11, 2011 to Pam Viscusi, 561-533-0887 ext. 285 or email: pviscusi@palmbeachzoo.org

If you would like more information on this topic or to schedule an interview, please call Linda Soper at (612) 308-4159 or email: linda@lindalanemarketing.com

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