Overview

The third-year field course is designed to provide students with practical learning on the monitoring methods for Chinese wetland ecosystems in general through studying the current management of Dongting Lake State Reserve. The main aims of the field course are to engage students in the following:

a) to understand contemporary issues from environmental science, geography (human and physical), watershed / catchment management and conservation

b) to visit and observe a wetland ecosystem where diverse climate, geology, soils, plant and animal communities can be examined, and

c) to develop a critical and analytical attitude to the natural and managed environment.

This field course is intended to enable students in demonstrating a critical understanding of the social and environmental issues exemplified with managing woodlands and other natural resources of an important wetland ecosystem.

A one-week field course in an important floodplain (catchment) of the Yangtze River and ecologically threatened wetland–Dongting Lake (Hunan Province). Dongting Lake (Chinese: 洞庭湖) was promoted as Ramsar site in 1992, and the second largest freshwater lake in China. It plays an important role in regulating the hydrological flows in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River. During the field course, students will closely observe and examine the different wetland habitats, including shallow waters, mudflats, Carex (sedges) meadows, reed marshes and poplar plantations.

Assessment Strategy

Threshold D- to D+

A threshold student should have a basic knowledge of the State Reserve, have a basic ability to recognize the wetland plants and aquatic plants, and be able to investigate the quadrat. The report satisfied the instruction requirements roughly.

Good

C- to B+

A good student should have broad knowledge of the State Reserve, have a satisfactory ability to recognize wetland and aquatic plants and be able to confidently investigate the wetland plants, aquatic plants and habitat factors. The report satisfied the instruction requirements with tables, graphs, figures.

Excellent

A- and above

An excellent student should have a sophisticated knowledge of State Reserve, have an advanced ability to recognize the wetland plants and aquatic plants and be highly skilled in investigating the habitat factors. The report greatly satisfied the instruction requirements completely with tables, graphs, figures.

Learning Outcomes

• Critically evaluate the influence of environmental stress and human impacts on ecosystems and propose strategies for their conservation and sustainable management.

• Demonstrate how to set up a scientifically robust research experiment in teams, including aspects of experimental design, data analysis and statistics, undertaking a literature search and assimilating information, and writing a scientific report.

• Determine how modern management practices of woodland mosaics are impacted through broader land-use contexts, including wetland ecosystems, through the lens of landscape ecology.