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WILDLIFE SCIENCE INTEREST GROUP

Program Description

The professional field of Wildlife Science covers the basic ecology of free-living animals and their relations to humans, including their management and conservation. Wildlife Science is therefore a multi-disciplinary field which draws from the natural, quantitative, and social sciences. The Wildlife Science interest group is active in all phases of the discipline with current research projects on the basic ecology of species and a wide range of issues dealing with management and conservation of species and ecosystems, including problems in forest management, wildlife toxicology, range management, and marine mammalogy. The interest group focuses on vertebrates and is strongly field-oriented. Courses and seminars feature current approaches to wildlife research and management, ecological theory, and quantitative methods. The interest group stresses training in research, and opportunities for research are extensive.

The Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit is an integral part of the Wildlife Science interest group. Other cooperating units within the UW include the Center for Quantitative Science in Forestry, Fisheries, and Wildlife; the Department of Biology; the Burke Museum; and the Center for Water and Watershed Studies.

Graduates concentrating in Wildlife Science obtain employment in varied settings. Historically, most graduates have been hired by municipal, state, and federal agencies. Recently, as the demand for expertise in Wildlife Science has intensified, graduates also have found opportunities with consulting firms, private conservation organizations, and research laboratories.

Course work is flexible to cover the diversity of interests within the interest group.

Current Research

• Wildlife communities on "new forestry" demonstration sites in western Oregon and Washington
• Home range movements and habitat use of western gray squirrels
• Evaluating bird response to the Plum Creek Habitat Conservation Plan
• Evaluating the effectiveness of riparian management zones in providing habitat for wildlife
• Habitat requirements of Northern Goshawks in managed environments
• Marbled Murrelet occurrence in pristine environments
• Influence of forest fragmentation, recreation, and timber harvest on avian nest predators, with special reference to marbled murrelets.
• Winter habitat use and foraging behavior of lynx in north central Washington
• Amphibian use of stormwater retention ponds in King County
• Effects of natural disturbance and Barred Owl competition on Spotted Owls in Olympic National Park
• Corvid population dynamics along an urban-wildland gradient
• Wildlife conservation value of urban landscapes
• Effects of forest management on songbird populations in western Washington
• The role of summer range on mule deer populations in north central Washington

For current funded grants in this interest group click here.

For further information;

Interest group Coordinator: Dr. John Marzluff
College of Forest Resources
Box 352100
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-2100
Phone 206-616-6883; FAX 206-685-0789; email corvid @u.washington.edu

For admissions packet:

Office of Student Services
College of Forest Resources
Box 352100
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington 98195-2100
Phone:206-543-7081; FAX 206-685-0790; email cfradv@u.washington.edu