WFB195 Tracking Wildlife Corridors

COURSE SYLLABUS

Title: WFB195 Tracking Wildlife Corridors

Credits: 1

Instructor: Mike Kessler

Date/time: Course meets on Labor Day Weekend (Saturday/Sunday) from 9:00am to 5:00pm

Location: UVM’s Jericho Research Forest, 127 Tarbox Road, Jericho, VT 05465

Course Description:

This course utilizes the unique location of the UVM Jericho Research Forest to gain firsthand experience of the value of contiguous forests and connecting lands for the movement of Vermont wildlife. The overarching goal is to understand and appreciate how, where, and why animal movement favors specific features of a landscape, “especially forested areas that are near other forest patches with interior forest conditions that are well-buffered from fragmenting features like roads, development, or agricultural land.”1 Fieldwork involves exploring the wildlife corridors connecting the UVM Jericho Research Forest, the adjoining Town of Jericho’s Mobbs Farm Conservation Land, and the Western slopes of the Green Mountains. Students learn to apply inductive and deductive reasoning to identify characteristics of wildlife corridors on a micro and macro scale among the sections of the landscape they connect. Species utilization of the corridors is confirmed by the discovery of physical evidence when tracking. Goals:

1. Awareness of how animal movement favors certain features of a landscape. 2. Understanding how to assess habitat connectivity on a landscape. 3. Enhanced personal connection with the landscape studied.

Objectives:

Cognitive (to know): • Understand the role of contiguous forests and connecting lands for the movement of

wildlife; and the relationship between the topographical features of the landscape, the animal’s anatomy and physiology, and its strategies for survival.

• Employ components of systems thinking to interpret characteristics of wildlife corridors on a micro and macro scale:

o the setting of boundaries (establishing what is ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ the system); o the relationships between components inside the system; and o emergent behavior within the system.

Affective (to care):

1 “Conserving Vermont’s Natural Heritage: A Guide to Community-Based Planning for the Conservation of Vermont’s Fish, Wildlife, and Biological Diversity”, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department and Agency of Natural Resources, 2013, Montpelier, Vermont. 2nd Edition.

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• How wildlife survival depends on connecting corridors and the vulnerability of these corridors to alternative land use.

Behavioral (to do): • Methodically explore potential wildlife corridors for most efficient and effective data collection. • Identify disturbances to the baseline of the landscape as potential track evidence.

Learning Outcomes:

Declarative: • Locate a wildlife corridor in the field. • Determine whether it is a natural or adaptive corridor. • Identify the current and future risks to its preservation.

Procedural:

• Explore the landscape to discern the following constraints of animal movement: o Stealth (predation) o Locomotion (economy of energy) o Seclusion (rest/relaxation).

• Move through animal corridors with as little impact as possible to the animals using them.

COURSE MATERIALS

Required reading:

All assigned reading material is provided online via Blackboard including the following:

1) Conserving Vermont’s Natural Heritage: A Guide to Community-Based Planning for the Conservation of Vermont’s Fish, Wildlife, and Biological Diversity, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department and Agency of Natural Resources, 2013, Montpelier, Vermont. 2nd Edition.

Page numbers reference the original document – not the pages of the PDF: § Chapter 1 Vermont’s Natural Heritage, p. 11-23 § Part II – Natural Heritage Elements, p. 34-37 § Chapter 3 Landscape-Level Elements’, p. 38-45

2) Principles of Animal Locomotion, R. McNeill Alexander, Princeton University Press,

Princeton, N.J., 2013.

Page numbers reference the original document – not the pages of the PDF: § Chapter 1 The Best Way to Travel, p. 1-14

3) Handouts on Complex Adaptive Systems – Three very short primers. Courtesy of Ithaca

College’s Multidisciplinary Sustainability Education and Jason Hamilton, Chair, Department of Environmental Sciences and Studies, Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York. (Prof. Hamilton is a frequent guest instructor in this course).

§ Complex Adaptive Systems (1 page) § What is ‘Panarchy’? (1 page) § What are 21st Century Problems (4 pages)

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Student Evaluation/Assessment

Students are not expected to be proficient in tracking because it is an art form to be personally developed over time. Assessment is based upon the ability to observe and explore the landscape in a self-directed manner and to derive meaning from observations using valid forms of reasoning. Assessment of individual competency is not based upon the student’s level of tracking (which takes time to develop), but rather on their understanding of how to perform and progress in tracking based upon what they have learned and how they have applied that knowledge in the field. Grading:

25% Pre-Class Reflection Assessment of assigned reading material (above) regarding the application of the principles of complex adaptive systems to the study of wildlife corridors.

25% Attendance and Contribution The student’s first-hand experiences on the landscape from the perspective of the animals that move across it are essential to understanding the utility and functionality of wildlife corridors. Additionally, tracking is a skill that requires active participation; therefore, attendance is a key component to the achievement of learning outcomes.

25% Field Work Students are not expected to be proficient in tracking, but to apply themselves with an open mind and positive attitude in order to demonstrate their ability to explore the landscape in a self-directed manner guided by both deductive and inductive reasoning.

25% Final Reflection Paper The students reflect on their experiences in the course centering on how their understanding of the landscape has changed and how their study of wildlife corridors can be applied to solving complex problems in other and across multiple academic disciplines.

Scoring Rubric: A (comprehensive) Blackboard rubric is offered as an aid to spur creative ideas, organize your thoughts, and structure your overall composition. Its categories include:

• Written Expression • Reflection and Self-Assessment • Transdisciplinary Constructs • Connections to Experience • Creative Thinking

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General Course Information

Course Policies:

Prior experience – There are no prerequisites for this course, and it does not assume nor require that a student have prior tracking experience. Students are simply asked to exhibit an open mind, positive attitude, thirst for knowledge, and respect for others. Level of Instruction – This course is a general introduction to the scientific study of animal motion through the ancient technology of tracking. During field tracking, the level of instruction will be tailored to each person’s level of skill. Both the beginner and the expert tracker will be fully engaged. Assessment of individual competency is not based on the degree of difficulty but rather on the student’s demonstration of the process as well as understanding of the method and principles. Preparation and Participation – There will be excursions from the campus classroom that require hiking in the hills of the Jericho Research Forest in seasonable weather. Students are expected to dress accordingly and provide for their own specific needs, e.g. food, hydration etc. Transportation – Students are responsible for their own transportation to and from the Jericho Research Forest and are encouraged to share rides.

Instructor Communications – The UVM Blackboard online learning system and the Banner Student system (both of which use UVM email) are the two modes of instructor communication for this course. Students are responsible for using the Blackboard system and also for receiving messages sent to their UVM email account and/or insuring that their UVM email account is setup to forward messages accordingly. Attendance Policy Students are expected to attend all regularly scheduled classes and labs. It is the responsibility of the student to inform the instructor regarding the reason for absence or tardiness from class, and to discuss these with the instructor in advance whenever possible. Because the course takes place over 48 hours, it may not allow for significant absences or extensions. Intellectual Property Rights: Recording of class (i.e. audio or video/picture/camera-phone, etc.) is PROHIBITED in ALL cases without explicit instructor approval! Consistent with the University’s policy on intellectual property rights, teaching and curricular materials (including but not limited to classroom lectures, class notes, exams, handouts, and presentations) are the property of the instructor(s). Therefore, electronic recordings and/or transmissions of classes or class notes are prohibited without the express written permission of the instructor. Such permission is to be considered unique to the needs of an individual student (e.g. ADA compliance), and not a license for permanent retention or electronic dissemination to others. If screencasts of class lectures or PowerPoint slides in .pdf format are provided on Blackboard, this content is intended for use by registered students as a private study aid and is not to be shared or published.

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Classroom Code of Conduct Faculty and students will at all times conduct themselves in a manner that serves to maintain, promote, and enhance the high-quality academic environment befitting the University of Vermont. Details of the code of conduct are outlined on the UVM website. Student Course Evaluation As a matter of professional responsibility, all students are expected to complete a course and instructor evaluation at the end of the course. Evaluations will be posted on Blackboard and are anonymous and confidential. Religious Holidays Students have the right to practice the religion of their choice. Each semester (or summer course term) students should submit in writing and in advance to their instructors their documented religious holiday schedule for the semester or summer term. Faculty will permit students who miss work for the purpose of religious observance to make up this work. Academic Honesty The principle objective of the policy on academic honesty is to promote an intellectual climate and support the academic integrity of the University of Vermont. A full statement of the policy can be found in The Cat’s Tale (http://www.uvm.edu/~dos/?Page=office/catstale.php). Each student is responsible for knowing and observing this policy. ADA Student Accommodations Reasonable accommodations are provided for students with appropriate documentation from the ACCESS Office. ACCESS coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. They are located at A170 Living/Learning Center, and can be reached by phone 802-656-7753, or by e-mail access@uvm.edu. Visit their website http://www.uvm.edu/access. Per Access Program policy, the student must meet with the instructor before the start of the course to discuss and agree upon potential accommodations. Electronic Submissions/Internet Use The UVM Blackboard online learning system is used for all course-related materials, including but not limited to course: announcements, materials, assignments, submissions, exams and grades. Instructional Sequence:

Classroom discussion is interspersed with multiple daily excursions throughout the Mill Brook watershed to observe, identify, and track wildlife corridors linking the overall landscape from West Bolton to the Jericho Research Forest.