MARI 432 Subtidal Marine Ecology

Course coordinator:

Dr Steve Wing

Course Content:

This course seeks to expose postgraduate students in sciences to advanced topics in subtidal marine ecology through a series of lectures, laboratory sessions and field excursions covering a broad array of subtidal marine habitats and sampling techniques. Each day will consist of a morning field excursion dive followed by a lecture and laboratory exercise expanding upon the morning's observations and data collection. Field trips to Stewart Island and to Doubtful Sound will provide access to remote and unique subtidal habitats. Students will develop an in-depth knowledge of local subtidal organisms and be provided with an opportunity to design and develop an field research projects.

• Taxonomy and trophic structure within kelp forest communities, soft bottom communities, rocky reef communities and fjord communities;
• Techniques for quantifying; recruitment, growth and age, distribution and abundance, community diversity and richness;
• Experimental design and methods.

The vehicle for exposure to these topics is through hands-on applied research projects in subtidal ecology. The course will consist of three group projects with each participant responsible for a defined project component.

Prerequisites:

MARI 301 or MARI 414 and MARI 416 or permission of Head of Department

Corequisites:

Assessment:

Reading List:

Web Resources/Downloads

Download the Subtidal Marine Ecology brochure in PDF format.

Download the Subtidal Marine Ecology poster in PDF format.