But top scientists from around the globe have found another reason to converge here this week: rats.

Starting tomorrow and running through Saturday, some of the world's elite minds will gather at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa for a special conference organized by UH botany professor Don Drake and anthropology professor Terry Hunt.

More than 70 presentations will be made at the five-day conference regarding rats, humans and their impacts on island ecosystems. Research includes archaeology, Palaeo-environmental studies, genetics and field biology from islands around the world.

Tomorrow, professor Daniel Simberloff, an ecologist from University of Tennessee, who specializes in the biology of invasive species, will discuss the impact of rats and other animals on ecosystems, a UH news release said.

Also tomorrow, professor Atholl Anderson, an archaeologist from Australian National University, will address human colonization of the remote Pacific Islands and the simultaneous introduction of rats.

The presentations are free and open to the public.

Registration is required for other conference participation. For more information, visit the conference website at http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/drake/Rodents2007.htm.