Captive Animal Biology Field Laboratory

Catalog description

This laboratory course serves to introduce interested students to today's captive animal conservation efforts from the perspective of NC facilities on the front lines. Through the lens of these nearby institutions, we will investigate in detail a variety of factors essential to the management of wild animals in a captive setting. We will take topics (history, population management, genetics, nutrition, education, conservation) from the lecture course and expand them as we focus on challenges unique to these local captive facilities. While some activities will take place on campus, a number of off-campus field trips are required, including one 3-day laboratory at North Carolina Zoo. We will return to campus most days within the scheduled time frame, however students should plan for the possibility that labs may go overtime on some occasions.