¿­ÐýÃŹÙÍø

Course Description

Summary

Most conservation biology studies are fairly short-term: years to decades. But, many of the threats to biodiversity, including environmental change, unfold over longer timelines, and dynamic ecological responses to disturbances may not be fully captured in short studies. Paleobiology — the study of fossil organisms — can extend our understanding of population and community responses to environmental change. Conservation paleobiology brings long temporal perspectives to conservation practitioners. In this class, students will explore primary literature from paleobiology, conservation, and their intersection. After reading broadly in foundational to modern literature, we will focus on the place-based local case study of alpine plant communities in the northeastern United States and the conservation challenges of managing small, disjunct populations with assumed high vulnerability, but unknown paleo-histories.