GSE852 Wildlife Habitat Management
About this Unit
Semester 2, 2008
Offered: X2 - External/Online delivery; Second Half-Year
Convenor: Georgeanna Story
Prerequisites/corequisites: None
Credit Points: 4
In this unit we explore the relationship between wildlife and habitats. Students will develop an understanding of the underlying principles of wildlife habitat management and how these are incorporated into current management practices at a local and regional scale. Students will learn about the concepts of habitat selection and other associated theories, examine the issues surrounding indigenous management, learn to identify key habitat components within various ecosystems and gain practical experience in habitat assessment techniques.
Teaching Staff
Convenor: Ms Georgeanna Story
Mobile: 0429 779 928
Email: scatsabout@yahoo.com.au
Classes
GSE852 is offered as an online unit via distance education with the unit content available through Blackboard. Within the unit site you will have access to weekly lecture materials, reference lists, recommended websites, assessment tasks and other relevant materials. Entry to the unit is through the log on page at http://learn.mq.edu.au/. Use your 8 digit student number for your username. There are no on-campus sessions or scheduled field trips for this unit.
Regular contributions to the online discussion forum are an assessable component of this course and comprise 10% of the assessment marks.
Unit web page
Login to the unit through Blackboard (http://learn.mq.edu.au/)
Learning Outcomes
In this unit you will learn how to translate the current concepts of wildlife habitat relationships into practical habitat management. The specific learning outcomes of this unit are to:
- Develop an understanding of the theory of habitat use and selection
- Develop an understanding of other associated theories including the niche, resource limitation and habitat configuration
- Demonstrate an understanding of the role of habitat modelling in current habitat management
- Demonstrate an understanding of indigenous land management practises relating to wildlife habitat management and the it's role in current management
- Develop a working knowledge of the relevant habitat assessment techniques and associated quantitative methods for assessing habitat use
- Identify key habitat types within various ecosystems
- Understand the various options available for managing habitats to meet a stated wildlife management goal.
- Completion of a field assessment and scientific report
- Develop communication skills within several mediums
Teaching and Learning Strategy
This unit is delivered online through WebCT. Lectures are presented in a weekly format and each lecture includes a selection of references for further reading. A discussion board is available for a web based discussion on set questions posed within the lecture material. The discussion board is also useful for any question a student may have about other issues or problems encountered.
Within this unit you are expected to follow the current lectures and regularly participate in discussion through the discussion forum.
A basic description of the topics for each week follows.
Schedule of Lectures
| Week | Topics |
|---|---|
| 1 | Why Mange Habitat?
|
| 2 | Indigenous Land Management
|
| 3 | Basic Concepts of Habitat Management
|
| 4 | Habitat Configuration
|
| 5 | Key habitats: Forests and Woodlands (shrubby) |
| 6 | Key habitats: Woodlands (grassy) and Grasslands |
| 7 | Key habitats: Rivers and Wetlands |
| 8 | Key habitats: Semi-arid and Arid Desert Lands |
| 9 | Assessing Habitat
|
| 10 | Regional Scale Management
|
| 11 | Habitat Management Case Studies |
| 12 | Climate Change and Habitat Management |
| 13 | Conclustions and Unit Review |
Required and Recommended Texts/Materials
There is no set text for this unit.
Relationship between Assessment and Learning Outcomes
The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to allow you to demonstrate your understanding of the course content. The allocation of marks within each component reflects the relative importance of each task.
There are two assessment components within this unit:
- three (3) written assignments
- participation in online discussion.
Marks for the three assignments in the unit will be awarded on the following basis.
| Assignment | Max. Length | Marks | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assignment 1: Indigenous habitat management | 2000 words | 20% | |
| Assignment 2: Habitat modelling tools | 2000 words | 20% | |
| Assignment 3: Habitat assessment | 5000 words | 50% | |
| Participation in Disucssions Forum* | 10% |
Extensions may only be granted if sought before submission date. Assignments submitted late will be marked subject to penalties of 10% of available marks deducted per day late.
Specific details of each assignment can be accessed through the Assignments tool within the unit. This tool is used to view and download information about assignments, submit completed assignment files, view assignment marks and download graded assignments. Details of each assignment will be time-released to coincide with the presentation of specific lecture material relating to the assignment.
*Participation in the Discussions forum is part of the assessment for this unit and is worth 10% of your overall mark. Set questions for discussion postings are found within lecture notes and you will be marked throughout the semester on your participation in these questions. Grades are allocated for initial postings and the contribution to existing discussions.
Plagiarism
The University defines plagiarism in its rules: "Plagiarism involves using the work of another person and presenting it as one's own." Plagiarism is a serious breach of the University's rules and carries significant penalties. You must read the University's practices and procedures on plagiarism. These can be found in the Handbook of Postgraduate Studies or on the web at: http://www.student.mq.edu.au/plagiarism/
The policies and procedures explain what plagiarism is, how to avoid it, the procedures that will be taken in cases of suspected plagiarism, and the penalties if you are found guilty. Penalties may include a deduction of marks, failure in the unit, and/or referral to the University Discipline Committee.
The GSE recommends that students familiarise themselves with the information contained on the Georgetown University Honor Council website which discusses plagiarism in an easy to understand and comprehensive manner.
University Policy on Grading
Academic Senate has a set of guidelines on the distribution of grades across the range from fail to high distinction. Your final result will include one of these grades plus a standardised numerical grade (SNG).
On occasion your raw mark for a unit (i.e., the total of your marks for each assessment item) may not be the same as the SNG which you receive. Under the Senate guidelines, results may be scaled to ensure that there is a degree of comparability across the university, so that units with the same past performances of their students should achieve similar results.
It is important that you realise that the policy does not require that a minimum number of students are to be failed in any unit. In fact it does something like the opposite, in requiring examiners to explain their actions if more than 20% of students fail in a unit.
The process of scaling does not change the order of marks among students. A student who receives a higher raw mark than another will also receive a higher final scaled mark.
For an explanation of the policy see:
http://senate.mq.edu.au/rules/Guidelines2003.doc or
http://senate.mq.edu.au/rules/detailedguidelines.doc
Student Support Services
Macquarie University provides a range of Academic Student Support Services. Details of these services can be accessed at http://www.student.mq.edu.au.
Advice for Students with Disabilities/Health Conditions
The Equity Support Unit (ESU) provides support and assistance to students with a disability/health condition in aiming to ensure that they do not experience disadvantage in reaching their academic potential. Service provision is determined on a case-by-case basis following an assessment of a student's needs and the provision of supporting documentation. Service provision is also dependent on the availability of resources.
To register with ESU, download an Advice of Disability/Health Condition form from http://www.reg.mq.edu.au/academic-index.html. This form must be completed annually, irrespective of whether a disability/health condition is temporary, long-term or permanent. Students wishing to request support services from the ESU should make an appointment to see a Disability Advisor immediately after enrolling at Macquarie University.
Phone: (02) 9850 6494/7497
Fax: (02) 9850 6063
TTY: (02) 9850 6493
Email: equity@mq.edu.au
In person: Level 2, Lincoln Building (C8A), Macquarie University
Website: http://www.sss.mq.edu.au/equity