To investigate how species, communities, and habitats change over the rural-urban (or pristine to human-dominated) gradient students conduct a series of biological inventories, field measurements, taxonomic keying out, natural history classifications, landscape classifications, statistical analyses, and a literature review. Each laboratory session will be geared towards one or several of these...
This experiment illustrates how ecological theory can help conserve native species in a
fragmented landscape. It is germane to units on biogeography, human impacts on
ecosystems, landscape ecology, conservation, and restoration. During the first lab, the
instructor introduces the process of habitat fragmentation, the degree to which species
in species-poor assemblages are proper subsets of...
Photo of a hatchling loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) entering the surf on a beach in South Carolina. After hatching, juvenile sea turtles are guided to the ocean by celestial light reflecting off the ocean. Artificial light disrupts this process and serves to reduce reproductive success in loggerheads.
Image of a loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) hatchery in South Carolina. Nests are placed in an area where they are protected in varying degrees from natural or anthropogenic hazards. Efforts such as these are intended to increase the success rate of loggerhead reproduction and reverse population declines caused by human activities.