Module manager: Dr Lochran Traill
Email: L.Traill@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
School of Biology students are expected to have passed BLGY2155 (Population, Community and Conservation Ecology). School of Earth and Environment students are expected to have passed SOEE1181 (Ecology) and SOEE2690 (Managing Biodiversity). Students on programmes parented by other Schools are expected to have passed BLGY2155 (Population, Community and Conservation Ecology).
| BLGY2155 | Population, Community and Conservation Ecology |
| SOEE1181 | Ecology |
| SOEE2690 | Managing Biodiversity |
This module is not approved as a discovery module
The course provides an overview of conservation science theory and applications to key global conservation issues, and includes topics such as: - The principle threats to biodiversity - Extinction processes and extinction debt, and the consequences of losses in biodiversity - Species-area relationships and Island Biogeography theory - Illegal harvest - The African trophy hunting debate - The role of technology in conservation - Spatial conservation planning - Quantitative methods in conservation science.
The aims of this module are as follows:
- To develop an understanding of current theories and empirical examples in conservation science environmental decision science and conservation planning.
- To discuss the current patterns and causes of biodiversity loss and the consequences of this loss to ecosystem functioning and services and to illustrate the complexities of conservation policy in developing nations and how diversity of opinion matters.
- To show how ecological theory informs conservation theory and to illustrate how conservation practice works, or fails to work, in the real world through discussion of a diverse range of case studies,
- To show how technology plays an important role in conservation science and the contributions made by engineering and computer science (to conservation).
Specific learning outcomes demonstrated through assessment:
1. Outline current theories and empirical examples in conservation science, including mechanisms underlying global patterns in the distribution of animals and plants,
2. Interpret the primary mechanisms responsible for biodiversity loss in both theoretical and practical terms in terms of the consequences of biodiversity loss to ecosystem functioning and services,
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the complexities of conservation policy and decision making across cultural and political divides, and
4. Apply advances in technology in conservation, including important open-source software such as Marxan.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
1. Critically assess research information from a variety of sources, including evaluation of cultural and societal considerations and how they impact policy.
2. Apply knowledge and skills to solve problems in conservation planning and practice.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 20 | 1 | 20 |
| Practical | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Seminar | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Private study hours | 174 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 26 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Online Time-Limited Assessment | 60 |
| Coursework | Report - Marxan (spatial prioritisation) based report | 40 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 14/03/2025
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team