A unit of Lasting Forests
Sustained forests; sustained profits
evolving since March 30, 1999

Modern Wild Faunal
Resource System Management

[ Website Home | The Course's Home | Table of Contents | The Finder | Glossary ]

Tentative Course Outline

There are similarities betwen the Contents and the tentative, planned sequence of topics to be presented below. Changes will be made based on class membership and some current events.

1. The Wildlife Resource and General Systems - Review of definitions as used in the course: resource, wildlife, conservation, wildlife management, systems theory. The systems diagram and its practical components. Cross currents and the relevance of Gamma Theory.

2. Wildlife Management as Decision Making - Definition of wildlife management; contrast to wildlife biology; emphasis on output or objectives; emphasis on faunal system management and wildland systems; economics (definition); objective weighting over time and maximization.

3. Optimization - Deciding on the "best"; constraints; criteria and objectives; the factors of objectives; 7 types of objectives; emphasis on "best action to take"; problem-analysis vs a systems approach; efficiency vs effectiveness; sources of objectives; least-squares approaches; the definition of "benefits" as B and B* and the multi-dimensional nature of B* and Cost, C*.

4. Statistics as a Decision Tool - Review; test for difference: t and chi-square; simple linear regression; multiple regression; simultaneous change to gain control of a faunal system; non linear systems.

5. Building a Knowledge Base - Wildlife information system; GIS; the expert system; Beta estimates; incrementalism and bounded counts; Landsat; the n-dimensional hypervolume; Alpha units vs watershed management.

6. Research Techniques and Procedures - Field experiences and recommendations.

7. Manipulating People: The Committee - Influencing demand, value, perceived risk, and substitutability.

8. Law Enforcement - Overview; the nature of "research"; the needs in the law enforcement system.

9. Changing Populations or Demand?

10. The Managerial Attitude - Its dimensions; relevance of research; experience; rational sloppiness; the appropriate alpha level; sampling strategies; incremental strategies (see unit 5); strategies.

11. R* Guidance - The replacement for the "planning concept."

12. Costs (C*) of Management - Sources of funds; budgets; and rational spending.

13. Population Estimation - 1 - Philosophy, need, and limitations of populations estimation.

14. Population Estimation - 2 - Home range based estimates; bounded count; dynamics; doubling time; rate of change estimates; the sigmoid growth alternative; a lesson from island biography.

15. Population Space - N-dimensional temporal faunamass

16. Population Structure - Structure vs. dynamics; review of relevance of sex ratio; age ratio; density; genetic unit.

17. Biodiversity Estimates - the "variety" alternative.

18. Faunal Space - The "habitat" replacement; the dynamic land volume (vs. "area"); the significance of area over quality; "carrying capacity" revisited; unique faunal land volumes (the GIS); GAP analysis review; abiotic factors.

19. The Energy Unit as Food and Cover Equivalents - Review of Moen's studies and the energy-budgeting creature in a land volume.

20. "Habitat" Studies: Analysis and Evaluation - The cost of studies; the number needed; the long-term study; the model-based study; value for what; seasonal needs; types of cover; toward a theory of "cover"; the need for theory.

21. Total Faunal Resource Systems: the Dogwood Deer - Example of a total, species-specific, profit-oriented resource system.

22. Employment Potentials: the Role of the Future Effective Wildlifer - example of a total, integrated, private, for profit, natural resource company; the farm vs. the enterprise perspective; the firm vs. the agency perspective; professionals and vocations; success criteria; field work; sequential knowledge gains and protecting "experience" gains

23. Sampling to Gain Knowledge - The limits of statistics; basic sampling strategies; estimates; non-linear systems; is some knowledge better than ... ? The problem of inadequate sample sizes; handling outliers; the use of ranges.

24. Agroforestry and Wildlife Management - Overview; opportunities; international experiences China, India, Nigeria, Senegal.

25. Powerline Corridors and the Wildlifer - A fair place at the decision table; the EIS process; wildlife value; optimum corridor location; two phase decisions; parametric solutions; simulation vs. optimization.

26. The Raccoon and Turkey "Guilds" - Single species resource systems

27. Ecosystem Management and the 5 E's - The alternatives to growing policy literature: the esthetics, energetics, economics, ecology, enforcement hyperspace.

28. Managing the Other Fauna - Salamanders, prey systems, songbirds, butterflies.

29. Interspersion - The snarled nature of landscape ecology; the new unified index; edge volume; juxtaposition; contiguity; boundaries; relevant area; controlled space.

30. Managing Ecological Succession - The action rule; adding apples and oranges; the multi-resource solution; joint production functions and coactive management. The first days on the management area; control of populations, faunal space, and people.

31. Subversion - Test review; alternative management elements.

32. Bright Star Sanctuary - The Avi sport; management for the birds; pest control?; disease vectors; micromanagement vs. macromanagement.

33. Review - Return to fundamentals; the cross currents of the systems (objectives; context; inputs; processes; feedback; and feedforward) and the management triad (populations, faunal space, and people.)

34. Integrated Vertebrate Pest Damage Management - The concept, need, opportunities and "Pest Force" plan.

35. Sample exam questions for final exam.

Additional Comments about the Course

Go to the top.

This Web site is maintained by R. H. Giles, Jr.
Send an email message - Questions, revisions?
Last revision September 7, 2002.