Welcome Message

WAC President

Dear copepodologists, 

     Copepods play various roles in the ecosystem, such as plankton in the water column, benthos in substrates, symbionts on beneficial animals and parasites on (or in) their hosts. Accordingly, the members of the World Association of Copepodologists (WAC) are from a wide variety of fields, such as planktology, oceanography, limnology, taxonomy, fisheries, aquaculture, pathology, etc. The triennial International Conferences on Copepoda (ICOCs) are certainly the largest events under the sponsorship of the WAC.

     The coming conference, 10th ICOC, will be a great milestone in the history of WAC activities. Hence, all members should gather and celebrate this memorable event in Pattaya, Thailand, in July 2008.

     It was in 1981 that the 1st ICOC was held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Because this was my first international conference outside Japan, it is still memorable for me. Although the travel cost to Amsterdam was nearly equal to two months salary, attendance was rewarding for my later scientific career and building friendships with WAC members. I think that I have been trained to become a true copepodologist through a series of ICOCs.

     Thai copepodologists are not so many, but they are working very hard to host their colleagues from all over the world. The conference will be held at a renowned resort hotel on the Gulf of Thailand. I look forward to meeting many current WAC members and future members. The Thai way of hospitality will be awaiting you.