Fieldwork
Field work takes a variety of forms, according to your programme of study.
Afternoon field trips
Lancaster is uniquely located on the doorstep of the Yorkshire Dales and Lake District National Parks, The Forest of Bowland and Silverdale Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the north Lancashire coast, giving easy access to a diverse range of both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. This makes field-based study an exciting option and many modules include short field visits within the surrounding area.
Residential field courses
Spanish-Doñana Field Course
We visit Doñana National Park in the southwest of Spain, one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in Europe. The area is home to over 700 species of plants, over 300 species of birds and 37 species of terrestrial mammals including the Iberian Lynx, the most endangered of the world’s cats. The course explores the diversity of habitat and organisms living in the area and the actions that can be taken to promote the conservation of biodiversity.
Students gain practical experience of identification, critical observation and accurate recording of plants, invertebrates and birds. A guided visit to the national park provides students with an understanding of the role of National Parks in conservation.
Students observing birds at La Rocina hides
Iberian lynx (Photo: Programa de Conservación Ex-situ del Lince Ibérico, www.lynxexsitu.es)
Scottish Highlands Field Course
We visit the Scottish Highlands to demonstrate and explore ecological processes in the field.
The course is centred around Kindrogan Field Centre, Scotland’s National Centre for Excellence in Field Studies and Biodiversity Training, which is used as a base to run daily visits to sites of ecological importance in the highlands and surrounding areas where students are able to see the key species in each habitat and witness the effects of ecosystem processes.
Students gain an appreciation of the interaction between land-use, geology, habitat and animal populations and gain experience in how to investigate ecological problems in the field with an emphasis on ecosystem function.
The Brazilian Amazon
The Amazon is a fascinating place to explore the conservation and development
challenges facing tropical forests. We will be based in the Jari region in the
north-eastern Brazilian Amazon, and will visit many places of interest. These
include beautiful Amazonian forests and their wildlife, as well as rural
communities and large-scale sustainable logging operations. This is a unique
opportunity to work with Amazon experts from the Lancaster Environment Centre
and understand the challenges of pursuing biodiversity conservation whilst also
reducing poverty. We will learn how to monitor biodiversity and forest carbon
stocks and assess rural livelihoods, including farming and Brazil nut
collection.
Field work costs
Most afternoon and day trips are free, and costs of residential field courses are heavily subsidised.
Field work takes a variety of forms, according to your programme of study.
Afternoon field trips
Lancaster is uniquely located on the doorstep of the Yorkshire Dales and Lake District National Parks, The Forest of Bowland and Silverdale Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the north Lancashire coast, giving easy access to a diverse range of both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. This makes field-based study an exciting option and many modules include short field visits within the surrounding area.
Residential field courses
Spanish-Doñana Field Course
We visit Doñana National Park in the southwest of Spain, one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in Europe. The area is home to over 700 species of plants, over 300 species of birds and 37 species of terrestrial mammals including the Iberian Lynx, the most endangered of the world’s cats. The course explores the diversity of habitat and organisms living in the area and the actions that can be taken to promote the conservation of biodiversity.
Students gain practical experience of identification, critical observation and accurate recording of plants, invertebrates and birds. A guided visit to the national park provides students with an understanding of the role of National Parks in conservation.
Students observing birds at La Rocina hides
Iberian lynx (Photo: Programa de Conservación Ex-situ del Lince Ibérico, www.lynxexsitu.es)
Scottish Highlands Field Course
We visit the Scottish Highlands to demonstrate and explore ecological processes in the field.
The course is centred around Kindrogan Field Centre, Scotland’s National Centre for Excellence in Field Studies and Biodiversity Training, which is used as a base to run daily visits to sites of ecological importance in the highlands and surrounding areas where students are able to see the key species in each habitat and witness the effects of ecosystem processes.
Students gain an appreciation of the interaction between land-use, geology, habitat and animal populations and gain experience in how to investigate ecological problems in the field with an emphasis on ecosystem function.
The Brazilian Amazon
The Amazon is a fascinating place to explore the conservation and development challenges facing tropical forests. We will be based in the Jari region in the north-eastern Brazilian Amazon, and will visit many places of interest. These include beautiful Amazonian forests and their wildlife, as well as rural communities and large-scale sustainable logging operations. This is a unique opportunity to work with Amazon experts from the Lancaster Environment Centre and understand the challenges of pursuing biodiversity conservation whilst also reducing poverty. We will learn how to monitor biodiversity and forest carbon stocks and assess rural livelihoods, including farming and Brazil nut collection.
Field work costs
Most afternoon and day trips are free, and costs of residential field courses are heavily subsidised.