CWS 330: Applied Wildlife Habitat and Population Management

This 3-credit upper-level course examines the principles and application of wildlife management in North America. The course begins with a focused overview of the historical development of wildlife conservation, foundational statutes, and funding mechanisms to gain an understanding as to why wildlife is managed and how management is supported institutionally and financially. The majority of the course emphasizes science-based approaches to managing and monitoring wildlife populations across ecological systems, including forests, wetlands, grasslands, and agricultural landscapes. Students examine management of major wildlife groups (e.g., big game, upland game, waterfowl, nongame species, raptors, and endangered species), with substantial attention to habitat definition, scale, monitoring, and manipulation. Students integrate ecological principles, human dimensions, and practical constraints by developing and presenting a wildlife management plan for a designated landscape. Foundational literature, beginning with Game Management by Aldo Leopold and extending to contemporary scientific publications, provides the intellectual framework for the course.