We have updated the tournament overview (2nd notice). Each section now contains more specific details.

Where is the tournament application guideline?HerePlease view from here.

Dear members of the Zoological Society,

Although it is very late, following our previous notice on April 5, we would like to inform all members once again of the decisions made regarding this year's academic conference.

Notice of Cancellation of the Yonago City Tournament Scheduled for September This Year and Postponement to September Next Year

Regarding the holding of this year's annual meeting of the Zoological Society, after repeated discussions by the Yonago Meeting Organizing Committee, other meeting-related personnel, and the Board of Directors, and after carefully considering that COVID-19 infections continue to have a major impact on society as a whole, we have reached the following conclusion.

• • We have determined that this year's Yonago Convention (the 91st convention) cannot be held, and therefore the convention in Yonago City will be postponed by one year, to be held as the 92nd convention in 2021 (scheduled for September 2–4).
  • Preparation for the Yonago Tournament and the structure of the tournament executive committee will, as a rule, be postponed by one year.
  • After that, the rotation of convention organizers will be shifted back by one year each, with the 2022 Tokyo Convention (scheduled to be hosted by Waseda University) followed by the 2023 Yamagata Convention.

Notice of the online alternative tournament to be held this September

An extraordinary board meeting was held on May 1 to discuss alternative events for this year's Yonago Convention. As a result, a proposal to hold a scaled-down alternative event as outlined below was approved. While the specific details of the implementation need to be worked out moving forward, we plan to finalize the implementation method by late May, reopen participant registration on June 1, and accept abstract submissions and participant registration until July 1.

From the perspective of holding a scaled-down alternative event within the schedule of the Yonago Convention, the alternative event is planned for a total of 1.5 days: all day on Friday, September 4, and half a day on Saturday, September 5. The events to be held are as follows.

Around 5 slots in total for public symposiums and related meetings
General presentations in online poster format
- Headquarters planned events: General meeting, award winner lectures (Society Award and Encouragement Award), and headquarters planned symposium (lectures by 3 recipients of the Myohara Research Grant)

All of these events will be held online via live streaming, with no on-demand recorded streaming or downloading permitted, and attendance restricted to registered participants only. As with regular academic conferences, recording the presentation content through any media during the events is strictly prohibited to protect unpublished paper data. In addition, programs and online abstract search systems (such as the Kcon-navi system) provided at conventional conferences will not be available. For both symposia and general presentations, implementation methods will be devised to enable discussions among participants. Furthermore, for general presentations, the presentation format will be made as flexible as possible to reduce the burden on presenters while providing a platform for discussion.
Since online events also incur hosting costs, membership fees will be determined after future consideration, but "student participation fees will be free, including for presenters," and even for regular members, it is expected to be less than half the price of a regular conference.
We plan to set up multiple channels on a web conferencing system to hold an online social gathering as a substitute for the company party.
The alternative events mentioned above will be led by the society headquarters, and the Yonago Convention Preparation Committee will be responsible for hosting conventions for the 2021 academic year and beyond.
High school student presentations will not be held.

That is all. While the event will be held amidst very difficult social circumstances, we expect those planning to present to conduct their research within reasonable limits suited to the current situation, and we look forward to the participation and presentations of many attendees.

Yoshitaka Oka, President, Zoological Society of Japan

91st Yonago Convention, Tournament Preparation Executive Committee Chair, Nobuomi Tsurusaki