Foreign Field Excursion

Course goals

Students will learn to:

• Formulate and answer relevant research questions related to tropical ecology
• Develop methods to collect and analyze data
• Place scientific knowledge in a wider context, i.e. related to management and conservation of nature
• Understand the challenges related to working in foreign countries and with societal partners

Content

This 6EC field course in tropical ecology focuses on studying and exploring the different aspects of ecosystems found in tropical regions. It involves two weeks of fieldwork/excursions, which includes on-site observations, data collection, and analysis. Participants in this field course will have the opportunity to explore various topics, including biodiversity, species interactions, ecological processes, and conservation strategies specific to tropical ecosystems. They will learn how to identify different species of plants and animals, as well as study their behaviors, adaptations, and ecological roles.

In addition to fieldwork, the course includes lectures, seminars, and discussions to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of the ecological principles and challenges specific to tropical ecosystems. The course will provide students who have the ambition to work in tropical countries with field experience, which will make them better prepared when they apply for jobs. Students who do not pursue a career in the tropics will also benefit from the course, as they learn about highly complex ecosystems, their diversity, threats, the challenges concerning conserving these ecosystems, including the role of political and economic stakes, and they will learn about socio-economic aspects of nature conservation, something which has an increasing role in our responsibilities as scientists but also as society.

Overall, this field course provides a unique opportunity for students and researchers to gain practical experience and knowledge about the complexities of tropical ecosystems while immersing themselves in the natural beauty of these regions.

Field Course Tropical Ecology description
The tropics are by far the most biodiverse areas on our planet. How did this diversity arise and how is it maintained? How can we manage tropical forests? Will tropical ecosystems survive global warming? These are some of the questions we will tackle in the course “Tropical Ecology”. The course of 4 weeks will consist of one-week intensive lectures and discussions, a two-week excursion to Ecuador and a final week with some lectures and time to write a field report.

Alexander van Humboldt was a German naturalist and discoverer. His five-year expedition to South America is world-famous and he is considered the father of modern biogeography. His travels included the high Andes and Amazon Forest. His scheme of Andean vegetation zonation (figure below) is still being used in modern research. In this excursion we will follow that vegetation zonation as we travel from the snow caps of the Andean highlands to the lowland rainforest around Tiputini fieldstation, one of the famous field stations in “hyper-species-rich” western Amazonia.

Ecuador, located in northwestern South America, is one of the most ecologically and topographically diverse countries in South America. Ranging in elevation from sea level to over 6,000 meters, Ecuador has one of the richest floras and faunas in the world. The country boasts ~2,000 species of freshwater fish, 680 species of amphibians and reptiles, 1,435 species of birds, and about 230 species of mammals. Plants are very rich with perhaps over 25,000 species. One hectare (two football fields) in tropical rain forest in Ecuador may have over 300 tree species and close to a 1000 vascular plant species. Insect are too many to name…