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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS & ANSWERS FOR BEE COURSE PARTICIPANTS The SWRS facilities, environment, and other introductory information is provided on the Station's web site at http://research.amnh.org/swrs/ NOTE: Three to four participants (of same gender) will be housed in very comfortable, dormitory-style cabin rooms, each with beds, bedding, and separate bathroom/shower facilities. Misc. information: The Station provides laundry facilities (washer, dryer, and detergent) for free. Three meals are served daily including vegetarian and vegan.
Flying. If you are flying into Tucson International Airport, vans will be waiting for pick ups between Noon and 4:00 p.m. The meeting area will be in the main restaurant on the airport's upper level, "Jet Rock Cafe" (not the satellite restaurants that are near the gates). Instructors will be waiting for you there, next to "The Bee Course" sign, which can be seen in the adjacent photograph. If you encounter difficulty in scheduling an arrival time between Noon and 4:00 p.m. on September 10, you may want to consider arriving in Tucson on September 9, staying overnight at one of the nearby airport hotels. One hotel that people commonly stay at is Hampton Inn near the airport with free van service to and from the airport. As often happens, planes get delayed. If you encounter significant travel problems on September 9/10, please contact the Research Station at (520) 558-2396, as soon as you can. Instructors at the airport will be calling the Station to learn of any travel problems. For those flying out of Tucson, transport to the airport will be available on September 20. Vans will leave the Station at 9:00 a.m. Therefore, departing flights should be scheduled to leave after 1:00 pm. Driving. If you are driving to the Research Station via Tucson, the Station's web site provides the following instructions: "Interstate Highway 10 to N.M. 80 (Road Forks, N.M.), 25 mi south to turnoff west to Portal (N.M. 533). The Station is 5 mi west of Portal, by paved road, in Cave Creek Canyon, Cochise Co., Arizona." IMPORTANT: Be sure to take Route 80 off of Highway 10, only AFTER you cross the border from Arizona into New Mexico. Also, note that the "5 mi west of Portal" is a long 5 miles. The road is narrow and full of curves and turns. The Station will be on the left-hand side of the road and is marked by a sign. What do I need to do to prepare for the course? No preparation for the course is required. However, advance readings (identified below) are recommended, which would be especially helpful for individuals with little or no entomological background. The course textbook is The Bee Genera of North and Central America, Michener, C.D., R.J. McGinley and B.N. Danforth, 1994, Smithsonian Press. Recommended reading: pages 8-14 ("Terminology of Structures;" don't worry about memorizing details in advance). Copies will be available for all participants' use during the course. What do I need to bring with me for the course? The following supplies will be available to all students for use during the course. Individuals who have certain supplies of their own are encouraged to bring them. This is especially true with regard to such items as the course books, insect nets, fine forceps, etc.
The following items are things that you are expected to bring:
The following items are things that you might consider bringing:
Misc. supplies information: The vans returning from Tucson airport on September 10 will make a stop at the well-supplied Safeway in Willcox, Arizona. There you can purchase those items that you manage to forget, e.g., sun lotion, flashlights, as well as any special snacks and/or refreshments that you might want to have at the Station. NOTE: general-use refrigerators are available in the Station's Main House. The local Portal Store (5 miles from the Station) provides basic amenities. We usually stop there on field trip days to stock up on bottled water and sodas. The Station's front office sells souvenir items, as well as field guides and local-area history books. Can I keep the specimens I collect during the course? Yes! We want students to go home with bees that are correctly identified to genus and properly labeled. We will be generating specimen labels at the Station. Remember that you will be returning with one or two insect boxes (that you didn't come with) and should anticipate this for your return packing. How do I pay the Station fees? All students are expected to pay Station fees, $670 covering room and board, prior to departure. The Station accepts cash, money orders (in U.S. dollars), and credit cards (MC, VISA, DISC), but not personal checks. Do I need extra money at the Station? The Stations fees of $670 cover all of your expenses (room, meals including lunches on field trips, laundry) at the SWRS. However, if you wish meals at the airport as you arrive or depart or you wish to purchase snacks at the Portal Store or in the Safeway in Willcox, you must be prepared to cover these expenses on your own. |
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