Wildlife and Wildlands Management

Catalog description

Wildlife and Wildlands Management will focus on the application of ecological principles to studying and managing wildlife populations with emphasis on habitat management. This course serves as an introduction to wildlife ecology and management and focuses on the wildlife of North America. The course begins with a brief examination of the history of wildlife management and wildlife policy in North America. The majority of the class will focus on important wildlife species, wildlife ecology, population biology, and other subjects of importance to wildlife management. Special problems such as endangered species preservation, genetic diversity conservation, predator management, control of nuisance and alien species, and other non-game species will be covered. We will discuss case histories and current issues of wildlife management on public and private lands. Science, of which wildlife conservation is a part, allows us to understand how living systems function. This knowledge further allows us to determine our role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. We also consider the attitudes of humans toward wildlife and their demands and impacts on North America’s wildlife resources.