Winter Ecology Course 2011

First taught in 1992, Professor Rick Lathrop's Winter Field Ecology course has introduced a whole generation of students to the special challenges that the winter environment poses to plants, animals and people.

The objective of the Winter Field Ecology course is to provide students a field ecology experience in the "North Country" during the winter. The course investigates the adaptations that plants and animals have evolved to function and thrive during the winter season.

This one-week January inter-session course is held off-campus at the Adirondack Ecological Center in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York. During the field trip, students investigate a variety of ecological questions/phenomena through first-hand field observations or measurements, data synthesis and interpretation. Course requirements include readings, field exercises, a field journal, and an oral presentation. The class also learns how to travel by snowshoe, build snow shelters, identify plants in winter, track animals and otherwise experience the joys of the outdoors in winter.