The summer program Wildlife Conservation in Trinidad runs for 26 days from July-early Aug. The tentative dates for 2017 are July 9–August 3

The program provides students the opportunity to study natural history and ecology in a tropical forest, contribute to leatherback sea turtle research, and experience successful examples of community-based conservation. Our introduction to Trinidad begins at the world famous Asa Wright Nature Center (http://asawright.org), where we will stay quite comfortably for several nights and become oriented to tropical forest wildlife and ecology. We will visit an Oilbird cave, observe manakin leks, and walk at night to look for tarantulas, forest crabs, beetles, frogs, and snakes. Toucans, parrots, motmots, and trogons all live on the grounds, which consist mainly of undisturbed tropical forest. We will also visit the Caroni Swamp for an introduction to mangrove ecology and to experience the renowned evening flight of Scarlet Ibis. During eight evenings on Leatherback nesting beaches (http://turtlevillagetrust.org, http://www.mtplaisir.com), students will work under the guidance of local community members; students will tag and measure many of these unique and massive seaturtles and learn firsthand about a project that successfully combines science, conservation, and education. Then it’s back to Asa Wright for 7 nights where students will complete their projects. A visit to nearby Brasso Seco will allow students to experience another community-based approach to conservation and to share our project results with Trinidadian students.

CLASS
ENVR 495-901 – Wildlife Conservation in Trinidad
This course fulfills the experiential learning requirement for environmental studies majors and should also be of great interest to biology majors. We focus on methods for studying tropical wildlife, citizen science approaches to collecting wildlife data, and community-based conservation. Students study tropical wildlife diversity as well, appreciating and learning to identify a variety of birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles. Students will observe and participate in local conservation efforts, learning firsthand about the details that make such projects successful. Students will record their experiences, observations, and reflections in a journal that will be submitted for a grade at the end of the course. Teams of 2-4 students will work together on independent research projects dealing with wildlife ecology, conservation, outreach, or education. Many, if not all, projects will produce results or materials that will be of practical benefit to the Asa Wright Nature Center in support of their mission of conservation and education. Assigned reading will be completed before traveling to Trinidad, and a paper describing the research project will be due after we return to Salisbury. There are no prerequisites for the course and it is open to all university students however we especially encourage Biology and Environmental Studies candidates to apply.

HOUSING
We will stay at the ASA Wright Nature Center (2-4 students per room, private baths), Suzan’s Guest House in Matura (2-3 students per room, shared bathroom accommodations) and Grand Riviere right on the beach at Mt Plaisir (2-6 students per room, private baths).

COST
Cost is estimated to be $3500. A final cost will be determined in early spring 2017. The price includes tuition, airfare, transfers in country, all meals, housing, transportation, and insurance. A passport is required for this trip and must be valid for three months before departure – which means you must have a valid passport by February 2017. This is the responsibility of the student and is not included in the program cost above. In addition, students may wish to consult a travel medicine specialist for advice about appropriate measures to take before the trip. Please see http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/see-doctor

ADMISSION
Interested students will need to create an online profile and submit an online application containing:
- A 300 word application essay answering the question "How will your participation in this program contribute significantly to your academic career?"
- An unofficial transcript demonstrating overall Grade Point Average of 2.5
Students must schedule an interview after completing the online application. Admission is competitive and enrollment is limited to 18 participants. Students will be admitted on a rolling basis until the program is full. Once the program is full, additional qualifying students will be placed on a waiting list.

For More Information

Dr. Tami Ransom
Department of Environmental Studies
tsransom@salisbury.edu
http://www.salisbury.edu/environmentalstudies/faculty/tami_ransom.html