Applied Ecology, my second year

My second year started off slowly. Most of our time out was taken up with visits to the Eden Project, this was because we had been given the job of mapping the trees for our GIS module. In the first few months one member of our course dropped out and one already was repeating the first year so we were down to 6 in our class. We were split into groups of two and one of three to each map a different biome, but with one person leaving we ended up with two groups of three. I was mapping the tropical biome while the other group mapped the outside biome. After a few visits to get our volunteer badges and learn the rules/health and safety, we were allowed to go off and map 50 trees. As this module was only half a year it was a struggle to fit learning new software and trips to Eden in so they gave us an extension for the report. But I really enjoyed this module and loved learning the software, as I found it so useful I added basic GIS maps to most of my assignments in the second year.

Before Christmas we had little to hand in, which unfortunately meant we had a lot to do at the end of the year. We did get to put up nest boxes for Dormice on Goss moor and also go fungus hunting in some orchards with fungus experts. Apart from that most of our lessons were in the classroom. I think we had better modules this year, as well as GIS we were learning about mammals, invertebrates and consultancy. The consultancy module included learning about current legislation, EIA, how to do phase one habitat surveys, contaminated land and invasive species. In invertebrates we also learnt about invasive species such as the killer shrimp and the zebra mussel, we also concentrated on taxonomy, Hexapoda and Evidence based learning. For Mammals we learnt the ecology for mammals in the UK including bats, dormice, badgers and other small mammals. 

After Christmas we continued our trips to Eden until February. With our invertebrate module we went out and practiced making pitfall traps and doing blanket searches. After half term we finished our GIS module and started two more, Genetics and Reptiles and Amphibians. For genetics we were in a class with another group, they had some knowledge of genetics as they had covered it in the first year but we had not so were a little behind. I spent time learning basic genetics in my own time. We covered quite a lot in this module including mitosis and meiosis, DNA replication, molecular tools, monohybrid crosses and genetic drift and gene flow. We got to practice separating DNA, PCR and gel electrophoresis, which we then wrote up for our assignment. I found these skills very useful, especially molecular tools, now when reading reports I can understand how they came to their conclusions and what tools they used to do this. I think they are now looking to add genetics to the first year which would help greatly. 

Within our college they are running a group, funded by DEFRA called SINNG (Student invasive non-native group). They are working to increase action and awareness on INNS (Invasive Non-Native Species) and reduce the impacts INNS are currently having on native wildlife. Action includes practical fieldwork, research, public engagement and raising awareness. 

http://www.sinng.org.uk/

As this group is based at college and Invasives are being looked at more, many of our modules included them. This could be seen the most in our Reptiles and Amphibians module. Our first trip out with this module was to look at Alpine Newts, an invasive species only just found in Cornwall. Despite only just been identified they have probably been here since at least the 1980s. This was ideal for us as we got to go on many trips and practice our Amphibian search skills. We got to practice netting in garden ponds, bottle trapping in bigger ponds and torch light surveys at the college pond (although there are no Alpine Newts in there).  I found this very interesting and it increased my interest for Amphibians, so much so I have been looking to help carry on this project on Alpine Newts into my third year. We also got a chance to carry out a survey on an area for Great crested Newt, although we do not have any in Cornwall I would now be able to go and survey elsewhere in the country for them. For the reptiles side of this module we learnt how to identify different species and different sexes, we also learnt survey techniques and were able to add refugia to the college grounds.

Carrying on with our yearlong modules we got to go back to Goss moor to check the Dormice boxes we had put up in October. We did not find any Dormice but did find the box we had put up in the Gorse in the middle of the field was being used by Dormice. Most of the other boxes were being used by field mice and we did find two of them in a box. We also got to put out Longworth traps on the college grounds, here we found many field mice too. We visited Camborne to look at a badger den visited beavers and also went to Perranarworthal to do bat detecting. For invertebrates we went to Bude to look for Zebra mussels along the canal and work out the best method for finding abundance and then removal would be. 

Beaver

Overall I feel this year I have learnt much more than the first year. We have spent our time learning practical survey techniques as well as the legislation that goes with it. It’s a shame that the year feels so short as I would love to carry on with these modules covered this year. 

My second year modules are;

Invertebrate Ecology and Survey

Survey and Management of Mammals

Genetics for Conservation

Habitat Survey & GIS

Conservation & Consultancy in Practice

Reptile & Amphibian Ecology & Surveying

Individual Research Project