Wildlife Disease Ecology and Management

Catalog description

This course will provide students with an understanding of the ecological and evolutionary complexity inherent to host-pathogen interactions in wildlife systems. FWCE 442 /542 introduces students to parasite and pathogen diversity, core concepts in disease ecology (e.g., pathogen population dynamics, transmission, disease models, virulence), host-pathogen coevolution, community ecology of host-pathogen interactions, and the importance of pathogens in conservation and management. In the laboratory, students will learn basic techniques to isolate pathogens from living organisms, detect pathogens using molecular tools, and model disease outbreaks using bioinformatics. Field trips are required.