Important information prior to your arrival

Dear all,

With the ECA2025 Congress in Zadar approaching, we are sending you some important information.

ECA2025 in numbers: 175 participants (62 students) from 41 countries across 5 continents, presenting 91 oral and 61 poster contributions.

Registration opens at 18:00 on 31 August 2025 at the main venue building of Zadar University (entrance from the seaside). The Welcome Reception will take place at the same location from 19:00, offering an opportunity to meet and connect with other participants over some drinks and food before the official start of the congress. The sea is clean and approachable there, so don't hesitate to take a swim!

The welcome package includes: a cotton tote bag, a bottle (tap water is drinkable in all parts of Croatia and we are very proud of that!), a hand fan, and a mini magnifier.

Lunch will be served in the Barbakan restaurant which is in the building next to the main venue. Other than vegan and vegetarian options, there are two meals to choose from each day (meat or fish) for participants who chose the no restriction option. For those who haven't yet, please add your name and mark your selection with an 'X' in this sheet: ECA2025 Menu options. All food will be clearly labeled with allergens, ensuring that everyone with dietary restrictions will know exactly what they can eat.

Free wifi will be available in the main venue building:
Username: Unizd.Konferencija
Password: Connect@Unizd234

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Practical information

There is public transport (a bus) from the airport to the city center (Central bus station). A one-way bus ticket costs €5.00 and can be purchased from the driver, usually in cash only. Departure times are available at: https://www.zadar-airport.hr/en/public-transport.

When taking a taxi, use official apps where you can see the price in advance. Otherwise, there is a chance you'll be overcharged. Uber and Bolt are available in Zadar, but there are many other private taxi companies.

If you are arriving by bus, you'll come into the Central bus station, where plenty of city bus lines are available. The bus ticket is €1.60 and is bought from the driver, usually in cash only.

If you are arriving by car and staying at the Kolovare Hotel, you can use the hotel's parking. For everyone else, we recommend using one of the public parking lots (unless your accommodation already provides parking), such as: Parkiralište Ulica Krešimira Čosića, Parking Zadar, garage Parkhaus in Zadar, Parking Obala kneza Branimira 9, and similar.

Lastly, if several of you are flying in on the same airplane, and would like a shuttle to transfer you to your accommodation, let us know and we will contact a reliable driver for an affordable price.

Cash/Card.

Although cards are accepted in most (but not all) places, Croatians still like to have cash in hand. Therefore, we recommend that you always carry some cash with you. The currency is the euro. In restaurants/cafés, you must specify if you want to pay by card; otherwise, the bill will be prepared as if you are paying in cash.

Main emergency phone number: 112
Additional numbers: Emergency Medical Service: 194; Police: 192; National Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC Rijeka): 195

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Social activities:

31st August (Sunday): Welcome reception from 19:00

2nd September (Tuesday): Sunset guided tour in Zadar historical center starting at 18:45. Afterwards, we will go to Brlog, a local brewery where you can try craft beer and have something to eat.

3rd September (Wednesday): Peace party in Barbakan restaurant from 20:30. The organizers will provide some food and drinks, and you can bring some drinks yourself.

4th September (Thursday): Group photo at 11:00.

4th September (Thursday): Congress dinner at Arsenal building at 21:00

All locations available here: link.

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Excursions: Click here for details

Permission to collect arachnids at all three locations (only the surface, not in caves) has been secured for all participants, so you are welcome to collect. The only requirement is that we submit a report with basic information on the collecting trip. The organizers would greatly appreciate it if you share the species you collected or observed, as your records could provide valuable new data on Croatia's largely unstudied surface arachnofauna.

Paklenica hiking excursion. Bring your usual hiking gear, such as a backpack, hiking shoes, an extra T-shirt, sunscreen, and similar essentials. For those who wish to visit Manita peć please bring warm clothing, as the cave temperature is 9 °C. A stream runs along the trail, with several deeper pools. You may be able to refresh yourself there if the water flow is sufficient, but at this time of year, the water level is usually at its lowest.

Krka walking excursion. All walks will be on relatively easy paths, so you can do it without hiking shoes. Bring sun protection. Swimming in the Krka River is not allowed.

Lunch package for Krka and Paklenica excursions: A sandwich, fruit, and 1L of water will be provided for each participant. We suggest you take some extra water. Also, we will make stops where you will be able to buy additional food and drinks.

Kornati boat excursion. You will spend most of the time on the boat, with occasional stops for swimming in the sea and short walks, so please bring your bathing suit and a towel. Don't forget sun protection. Food, including lunch and refreshments, will be provided on the boat.

More details for all three excursions will follow.

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Program:

The Congress Program is available on this link.

For participants with oral presentations, please remember to submit your presentation at the registration desk one day in advance to ensure the program runs smoothly. Please prepare your presentation in .PPT, .PPTX, or PDF format, using the 16:9 aspect ratio (Design → Slide Size → Widescreen (16:9)). Name your file as FirstName_LastName.ppt/.pptx/.pdf. We recommend using the "Embed all characters" option when saving your presentation in PowerPoint to ensure that all fonts display correctly.

Posters (acceptable formats: A1 or A0, portrait orientation) will be numbered, as marked in the Congress Program - upon arrival, you will be able to find your poster location. Posters will be displayed during the whole congress, while the dedicated Poster Session will be held on Thursday afternoon. For those using the on-site printing service, don't forget to bring cash for the printing facility on the first day.

Certificates of participation and the type of presentation will be available in a shared folder, the link to which we will share with you later.

Two symposia will be held during the congress:
1) How arachnids experience their world: senses, brain, development and behaviour (organized by Gabriele Uhl)
2) Science beneath the surface: cave arachnid ecology, diversity, and evolution (organized by Efrat Gavish-Regev, Dora Hlebec, and Martina Pavlek)

Student award competition

The awards to be given at this ECA are:

ESA Cash Prize for the three best posters and talks

Best Oral Presentation (1st place): free publication in any Pensoft journal (no deadline) + the new edition of Spider Biology by Rainer Foelix

Best Oral Presentation (2nd place): the new edition of Spider Biology by Rainer Foelix

Best Oral Presentation in specific fields (Taxonomy/Systematics/Phylogenetics/Biogeography): free publication in any PeerJ journal (no deadline), plus a featured article on the PeerJ blog highlighting the presented research.

Best Poster (1st place): free publication in any PeerJ journal (no deadline), along with a feature on the PeerJ blog to showcase the research + the new edition of Spider Biology by Rainer Foelix

The awards will be given on the last day, Friday, at the ESA General Assembly.

!!! Please let us know if you plan to come later or leave earlier so we can plan the congress activities more easily !!!