Course Title: Monitor biodiversity
Part B: Course Detail
Teaching Period: Term2 2010
Course Code: ENVI5063C
Course Title: Monitor biodiversity
School: 155T Vocational Health and Sciences
Campus: City Campus
Program: C5161 - Diploma of Conservation and Land Management
Course Contact: Nevil Schultz
Course Contact Phone: +61 3 9925 4221
Course Contact Email: nevil.schultz@rmit.edu.au
Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff
Nominal Hours: 100
Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.
Pre-requisites and Co-requisites
Before undertaking this course, students are advised to have completed the Course: Manage Natural Area Restoration Programs
Course Description
This course covers the process of monitoring biodiversity. Changes may lead to the monitoring of critical biological and physical factors and interactions that give a basis to make
corrective changes in a natural area. Monitoring biodiversity requires a knowledge of ecology, plant and animal classification, monitoring systems for flora, fauna and micro-organism populations, threats to
places of natural significance, accepted scientific processes and international, national and local standards and Codes of Practice.
National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria
National Element Code & Title: |
RTD4504A Monitor biodiversity |
Element: |
Monitor Biodiversity Observations are made according to monitoring plan and to |
Element: |
Prepare Equipment & Resources 2.1 Appropriate certificates, licenses and authorisations are |
Element: |
Review data Records of monitored data are examined for consistency and |
Element: |
Select Monitoring Techniques 1.1 Monitoring operations are selected to obtain required data |
Learning Outcomes
This is a competency based course
Details of Learning Activities
Analyse Action Statements on listed flora & fauna
Describe the Role of Biodiversity Monitoring in Action Plans
Species Recovery Action statement Analysis
Design a monitoring protocol as a part of a large-scale national park biodiversity monitoring program
Write an application to survey fauna & flora in a national park
Write an updated flora & fauna species list for a survey site within a national park
Write a report on survey results for three monitoring sites within a national park
Maintain field data in a field log book
Liase with national park officers on a field monitoring survey
Teaching Schedule
Monitor Biodiversity Class & Field Work Schedule, Semester 2 2010
Week | Topic | Learning Activity | Assessment |
1 | Introduction to Biodiversity & Problems of Biodiversity Loss | ||
2 | Listing of rare & threatened species | Action Statement Analysis I | |
3 | Action Statements & Recovery plans, FFG & EPBC CITES, IUCN,TSN, WWF Land For Wildlife |
Action Statement Analysis II | |
4 | Preparations for Monitoring | Setting out a monitoring protocol | Submit Action Statement Analysis |
5 | Causal Factors for biodiversity lossPermit Invasive species,Encroachment | Applications for Species Monitoring | |
6 | Biodiversity loss through fragmentation, islandisation, hybridisation |
Write out permit Application | |
7 | Wildlife Corridors, Captive Breeding | Permit Application due | |
8 | Morphological & Genetic Variation within populations | ||
9 | National park biodiversity management monitoring methods | Preparation for national park field monitoring week | |
10 | National park biodiversity management management methods | national park site updated flora & fauna report due | |
11 | Semester Break | ||
12 | Grampians Field Monitoring Week | Consultation with ranger, week-long flora & fauna survey at three sites | |
13 | Alleviating Biodiversity Loss, Species reintroduction. Inbreeding depression & outbreeding, Rare alleles, Seed banks | ||
14 | Repositories for biodiversity data, updating biodiversity data | Field Monitoring Report due | |
15 | Adaptive Management techniques that employ biodiversity data | log book due | |
Learning Resources
Prescribed Texts
References
Burgmann, M. & Lindenmayer, D. (2003) Conservation Biology New, T.R., (2000) Conservation Biology - An Introduction for Southern Australia, Oxford University Press |
Other Resources
Will be notified in schedule class time
Overview of Assessment
Assessment may include Reports, Assignments, Tests and maintaing a log book
Assessment Tasks
Action Statement Analysis, Incorporates Listing Status, FFG & EBPC acts
Biodiversity Monitoring Permit Application
National park Flora and Fauna species list for three monitoring sites
National park field monitoring report
Field log book
Assessment Matrix
Course Overview: Access Course Overview