Introduces the United States Endangered Species Act and its application, using a practicum model in which students draft five-year status reviews of protected species in partnership with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Students learn relevant environmental policy, apply principles of conservation biology, and develop practical skills in conservation.
Athena Title
Endangered Species Practicum
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
Students will understand how to explain the history and core elements of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and related laws and policies, and how they are applied in practice by federal and state agencies.
Students will understand how to apply an understanding of conservation biology to species status and recovery assessment, including effective synthesis of natural history information, demographic and genetics data, species threats, and conservation actions.
Students will understand how to find and synthesize relevant literature and write clear effective reports.
Topical Outline
Students learn about federal and state policies, delve into species natural history, ecology, and population status, and develop skills in applied research, information synthesis, and report writing. Module 1 will be taught in the first 3 weeks of class. Modules 2 and 3 will be taught concurrently as students conduct research for 5-year reviews and draft 5-year reviews.
Module 1: Laws and policies for endangered species, and their application:
• History of the ESA
• Sections of the ESA
• Species listing, downlisting, delisting, petitioning
• FWS and NOAA structure and organization
• Federal agency (“Section 7”) consultation
• Habitat conservation plans, candidate conservation agreements
• Related environmental laws
• State protection of species in Georgia and beyond
Module 2: Applied conservation biology:
• Species taxonomy, systematics, and nomenclature
• Understanding and interpreting species natural history, habitat, and trait information
• Understanding and interpreting population trends, distribution, abundance, and demographic data
• Understanding and interpreting genetics data
• Threats to imperiled species
• Conservation actions for species protection
Module 3: Practical skills used in conservation management:
• Sections of the 5-year review
• Kinds of reports, papers, and documents related to imperiled species
• Searching peer-reviewed and grey literature
• Summarizing and adapting existing literature (without plagiarizing)
• Essential rules for clear writing
• Reviewing, editing, and revising reports
Mini module: how to get a job in a federal or state wildlife agency
