Peracarida: Panama, Bocas del Toro 2024

This immersive course focused on peracarid systematics, collection, and preservation, featuring eight experts alongside 20 eager participants. The instructors brought a wide range of expertise in various groups within the Peracarida, as well as in science communication and biodiversity data management.

Each morning, attendees collected peracarids from diverse habitats, including coral reefs, sea-grasses, mangroves, and leaf litter. In the afternoons, they sorted and identified their specimens, gaining hands-on training in peracarid morphology. Evenings were dedicated to engaging lectures and discussions, enriching participants’ understanding of peracarid systematics, specimen preservation techniques for morphology and biomolecules, and specimen photography, among other topics.