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FOTP AGM 2022
Dr Anandi Bierman will present on the polyphagous shot hole borer. Image credit.
Date: Thursday 31 March 2022
Time: 7-9pm
Register in advance for our AGM
https://zoom.us/j/92548510997?pwd=R2xNbDQwL0N0WmU0MVFkVXlLQ1VqUT09 (After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting). Please note that spaces are limited, so sign up soon to avoid disappointment. 

Agenda
18:55 - Please join a few minutes in advance to ensure that your system works
19:00 - FOTP Formal AGM session 
20:00 - Guest Speaker: Dr Anandi Bierman - Genetics of the polyphagous shot hole borer and inferences about potential for future introductions in South Africa
21:00 - Formal close

As our members have come to know, we will keep the AGM business short and sweet. The first part of our AGM will include a photo-slideshow on our highlights from 2021, committee nominations and reports of office-bearers. Please feel free to read the minutes of our last AGM, published on our website here. Members of FOTP who join for our AGM will get treated to a talk on the polyphagous shot hole borer in the second part of the evening. 

Call for committee member nominations
Every year we like to call for nominations for new members to join our committee! This is an exciting chance to join a dynamic team with a great vision on a mission together, so please do consider putting forward a nomination. If you would like to know who is on our committee at present, please read up about our team here: www.tokaipark.com/about-us/team/. Please note that nominations can only be made by members, and must also be seconded by a member. All nominations must be submitted at least 10 days before the AGM. If you would like to check your membership status, or need help with a seconder, please e-mail the secretary at: tokaifynbosfriends@gmail.com. 
For those new to Zoom

Click here to watch a video to showing how to join a Zoom meeting. Here are some tutorials for how the meeting controls work, amongst others. 

Download the free version of the Zoom App onto your laptop or smartphone before the date of the meeting, this is very simple and easy, and only takes a minute or two. Click on 'Zoom desktop client (Windows or Mac)' to start the download.
 
About our speaker....
Dr Anandi Bierman is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Conservation Ecology and Entomology Department at Stellenbosch University studying landscape genomics of the polyphagous shot hole borer. 
The increase in international trade and human activities provide ideal long-range transport for a myriad of alien invasives. The Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer is not new on the list of invasive species in South Africa as it was first detected in 2012 however its potential impact only became noticeable around 2017.

What is it that makes some alien invasive species successful? Genetics and the environment are both important and untangling the impact of either is a complicated problem. A first step is understanding the genetic make-up of an invasive population and correlating that to things like locomotion (dispersal) or fertility (number of offspring).

In this talk, I show how I have tried to unravel the genetic make-up of the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer in South Africa by screening thousands of beetles collected from all provinces in the country.

With this fine-scale genetic map in hand, I look at how many introduction events have been made into South Africa, and how fast the beetle may be spreading. I also discuss the potential for future introductions and local adaptations of the beetles, which could make them even more of a threat. 
FOTP Night Walk
A scorpion spotted on a previous FOTP night walk. Photo credit: FynbosLIFE. 
Date | Thursday, 17 March 2022
Time | 18h45 
Cost | Free
Meeting location | Canal Carpark on Orpen Road, Tokai
Sign up here | https://forms.gle/jRJ6m63Tv7Z9DZpi7

There are limited spots available which will be filled on a first come, first served basis. FOTP's Covid Policy applies. 
Request for Donations
Would you like to get involved in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration? Are you not able to volunteer time to join in our hacks, but really appreciate the work we are doing? If yes, please consider making a donation. We are run entirely by volunteers who raise our own funds, and we do not collect membership fees. 

If you would like to make a donation, please feel free to use snapscan (below) our do a traditional EFT into our bank account. Please do use your name as reference if you would like us to know who the donation is from.

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