The media and scientific literature is full of information about the increasingly desperate plight of our native plants and animals. What you hear less about is the extraordinary efforts underway to reverse declines in biodiversity and how new scientific knowledge and tools are being applied to this end. That is the subject of this course, with a focus on recovering populations of threatened species and rebuilding functional ecological communities.
This course will introduce you to advanced concepts and tools for managing threatened species and ecosystems. Building on key concepts introduced in 2nd year courses, this course will provide you with an understanding of advanced concepts and tools, and the skills, to enable employment by conservation agencies/NGOs/consultants or to take further research in this area. It will focus on the interface between advances in science and practical management of threatened biodiversity with hands-on experience in ACT conservation reserves.
Note: This course is co-taught with undergraduate students but assessed separately.
Expression of Interest required: Please note that there are limited spaces and an EOI is required in early January for consideration - see "Other Information" below for details
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Apply contemporary concepts from across disciplines, including ecological, evolutionary and decision sciences, to management for recovering threatened species and ecosystems.
- Apply and evaluate new technologies to enhance management and monitoring of threatened species and ecosystems.
- Understand the multifaceted nature of conservation and be able to identify relevant stakeholders, and consider diverse, potentially conflicting opinions.
- Develop skills in project design, data analysis and communications.
- Collaborate in group-based presentation of project outcomes to stakeholders, academics and the public
Work Integrated Learning
Projects
Students will engage repeatedly with on-ground conservation managers at Mulligan's Flat and will present their projects to them (and other students) in the end of semester Group presentations.
Other Information
Places are limited because this course includes field-based projects at?Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary, that are dependent on the availability of appropriate staff. Please register your interest?online?. Applications will open in early November and close on January 10th.?Please include a short paragraph of why you want to take this course, including your expectations and what you hope to gain from this course.?Entry will be based on your expression of interest and academic merit. Please note that most of this course occurs off-campus and includes fieldwork which may occur at night. Attendance is expected to at least 80% of workshop/labs to pass the course (transport to the site will be provided as required, and allowances associated with any night-fieldwork will be made as required).
In relation to field-based projects, students will be actively mentored by staff from RSB and Fenner for the Mulligans Flat research component. Students will be supervised on-ground by staff from the Mulligans Flat fauna survey teams as appropriate.
Indicative Assessment
- Group presentation of outcomes and peer-review of contribution (10) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
- Mid-term examination (40) [LO 1,2]
- 4 x Summaries of papers assigned for workshops (2.5% each) (10) [LO 1,2]
- Written report on research project, including management relevance (20) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
- Critical literature review on relevant topic (20) [LO 1,2,3]
- It is a course requirement that students attend 80% of workshops and labs to attain a final grade (0) [LO 1,2,3,4,5]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
The expected workload will consist of approximately 130 hours throughout the semester including:
- Face-to face component which may consist of 8 x 4 hour lectures/workshops throughout the semester.
- Full day field trip in the 1st half of the semester, plus 36 hrs of field/on campus group-based projects in the 2nd half of the semester.
- Approximately 55 hours of self-directed study which will include preparation for lectures, presentations and other assessment tasks.
Students are expected to actively participate and contribute towards discussions.
Inherent Requirements
This course includes a full-day field trip and multiple other field-based activities.
For general information on field trips please visit: https://students.science.anu.edu.au/program-admin/college-science-field-trips
Requisite and Incompatibility
You will need to contact the Biology Teaching and Learning Centre or Fenner School of Environment and Society to request a permission code to enrol in this course.
Prescribed Texts
Nil
Preliminary Reading
Students will be assigned published papers or reviews as background to core topics and expected to discuss these in the workshops
Assumed Knowledge
Basic grounding in principles of genetics and ecology with knowledge equivalent to:
- At least one of: BIOL2131/6004 or BIOL2114/6114 or BIOL2151/6006 or ENVS2001/6201, and
- one of: BIOL2001/6200 or BIOL2202/6202 or ENVS1003/ENVS6103.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 2
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $4680 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $6720 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
First Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2933 | 23 Feb 2026 | 02 Mar 2026 | 31 Mar 2026 | 29 May 2026 | In Person | N/A |