| Course title | |||||
| 環境動物保全学特論 [Advanced Animal Science for Environmental Conservation] | |||||
| Course category | Requirement | Credit | 0.5 | ||
| Department | Year | ～ | Semester | Spring | |
| Course type | Spring | Course code | 96322 | ||
| Instructor(s) | |||||
| 金子 弥生 [KANEKO Yayoi] | |||||
| Facility affiliation | Faculty of Agriculture | Office | Email address | ||
| Course description |
|
“Carnivora and urban environment” The “Carnivora” is the target of this lecture. Carnivorous life style is killing and eating animal species, however, there are some plants, insects, fish, birds shows carnivorous. To know the Carnivora is not the killing system, as the most obvious character of the Carnivora appearance in evolutional process is “not rely on eating meat at all”. In this lecture, I will review the tremendous variation in carnivore geographic distribution, morphology, ecology, and behavior and social system. Then, I will introduce the consequences of this variation in biology with respect to interactions with humans, particularly with urban environments. Recent research projects in China and Tokyo which relate to the carnivore ecology and conservation topics are also introduced. 1) What is a carnivore? The earliest carnivora were miacids about 55 million years ago (mya), the extant families of Carnivora dates to appeared 25-35 mya, most species are from a common ancestor less than 1mya. Approximately 270 living species in 11 families classified as Carnivora. The body range from the 100 g least weasel to the 800g polar bear. 2) Behaviour and social system The daily activity patterns of carnivores range from almost exclusively nocturnal to crepuscular, to almost exclusively diurnal. It also changes seasonally, home ranges vary in size, largely in relation to changes in prey distribution and habitat use. Most small, nocturnal carnivores and all felids are solitary in social system. Many species in other taxa, however, are monogamous pairings to groups (is named as group, clans, packs, or prides due to species) and additional group members may provide extra provisioning for offspring, increase hunting efficiency, or protection. Intraspecific variation is social organization is primarily due to differences in food resources and habitat. 3) Urban environment for carnivore and conservation topics General characteristics of carnivore species succeeded to adapt urban environment are as follows. ① Most of the carnivore that inhabit urban/suburb ecosystem tend to be small to medium sized. ② Relatively high reproductive potential, coyotes, raccoons, and red foxes which females can breed at an early age and large litters. ③ In behavior, tolerance for or lack of avoidance of humans. For conservation, the diet generalist is seemed to be clearly advantageous in urban areas, but at the same time it lead many negative interactions between people and carnivores. In addition, original habits tend to be changed in process of distribute from mountains to urban habitat through suburb, experiencing habitat fragmentation, may facilitating evolutionary responses to novel environment “urban”. Not only in animals, humans in urban environment also clearly diverse in lifestyles, provisioning food, changed climate, animal right/welfare, etc. These makes us to wonder the urban carnivore’s surprising shifts in tolerance of humans. |
| Expected Learning |
| In this lecture, I will review the tremendous variation in carnivore geographic distribution, morphology, ecology, and behavior and social system. Then, I will introduce the consequences of this variation in biology with respect to interactions with humans, particularly with urban environments. Recent research projects in China and Tokyo which relate to the carnivore ecology and conservation topics are also introduced. |
| Course schedule |
| See the lecture outline section. |
| Prerequisites |
| Required Text(s) and Materials |
| Handouts will be provided in class. |
| References |
| To be announced in the lectures. |
| Assessment/Grading |
| Based on report. |
| Message from instructor(s) |
| To look at urban environment through a family Carnivora, I appreciate if it is fruitful to experience animal social system and ecology as science, as well as conservation ecology as one of field science in TUAT. |
| Course keywords |
| Office hours |
| Remarks 1 |
| Remarks 2 |
| Related URL |
| Lecture Language |
| Language Subject |
| Last update |
| 4/17/2017 5:06:47 PM |