Studying Behavioral Ecology on High School & College Campuses: A Practical Guide to Measuring Foraging Behavior Using Urban Wildlife

Mohammad A. Abu Baker; Sara E. Emerson; Joel S. Brown

doi:10.1525/abt.2015.77.6.432

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1 August 2015 Studying Behavioral Ecology on High School & College Campuses: A Practical Guide to Measuring Foraging Behavior Using Urban Wildlife

Mohammad A. Abu Baker, Sara E. Emerson, Joel S. Brown

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The American Biology Teacher, 77(6):432-440 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2015.77.6.432

Abstract

We present a practical field exercise for ecology and animal behavior classes that can be carried out on campus, using urban wildlife. Students document an animal's feeding behavior to study its interactions with the surrounding environment. In this approach, an animal's feeding behavior is quantified at experimental food patches placed within its habitat. Following a lecture on foraging ecology and an outdoor discussion about the animals on campus, students formulate questions and hypotheses. Simple statistical analyses are used to construct results and draw conclusions.

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Mohammad A. Abu Baker, Sara E. Emerson, and Joel S. Brown "Studying Behavioral Ecology on High School & College Campuses: A Practical Guide to Measuring Foraging Behavior Using Urban Wildlife," The American Biology Teacher 77(6), 432-440, (1 August 2015). https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2015.77.6.432

Published: 1 August 2015

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