Graduate Course Descriptions

The key to any program is course offerings and experiences offered to students.  Most of the classes on our program (WMAN) are hands-on with ample field lab classes.  The proximity of the campus to areas such as The University Forest, the Monongahela River, Cheat Lake , and Coopers Rock State Forest means field class experiences are only 15 minutes away.

An energetic Faculty with strong research programs leads the Wildlife and Fisheries Resources Program at WVU. An active research program benefits students in several ways. First, the Faculty remain abreast of new trends and approaches in the field. Secondly, an active research program means many opportunities for students to gain experience in field and laboratory applications through paid and volunteer work with the Faculty and their graduate students. Active Faculty also maintains many professional contacts in the field that translates into job opportunities for students.

Graduate Courses

WMAN 512. Wildlife Population Ecology. II (even years). 3 hr. PR: STAT 211, or equiv. Theory of population growth, population change, interspecific and intraspecific relationships involved in natural regulation of populations, and effects of exploitation on wildlife populations.   ( Petty ).

WMAN 534. Ecology and Management of Upland Wildlife. I (even years). 4 hr. PR: Consent. Ecology and management of upland game birds and mammals with emphasis on recent literature.  Wildlife-habitat relations with the primary focus on habitat use and selection.  ( Edwards ).

WMAN 536. Applied Wetlands Ecology and Management . I (odd years). 3 hr.  Ecology and management of wetlands for waterfowl and other wetland dependent species; wetland delineation and identification; wetland research and monitoring techniques.  ( Anderson ).

WMAN 550. Fish Ecology. II (even years). 3 hr. PR: WMAN 445 or consent. Study of the interactions of fish and their environment including bioenergetics, energy budgets, life history, ontogeny, feeding and guilds, and trophic ecology.  ( Hartman ).

WMAN 633. Quantitative Ecology. II (odd years). 3 hr. PR: STAT 511 or equiv., and WMAN 313 or equiv. A survey of techniques and strategies for the quantitative analysis of complex ecological data sets.  ( Petty / Welsh ).

WMAN 636. Ecology and Management of Wetland Wildlife . I (odd years). 4 hr. PR: Consent. Ecology and management of waterfowl and wetland furbearers with emphasis on recent research and management literature.   ( Anderson ).

WMAN 693.  Advanced Ichthyology.  I. (even years).  4 hr.  An in-depth study of fishes, with emphasis on ecology, morphology, systematics, and zoogeography.  Identification of fishes within the Appalachian region is emphasized through lab and field studies.  ( Welsh ).

WMAN 693.  Aquatic Toxicology.  II. (odd years). 3 hr.  Class will cover toxicity testing, the environmental fate of contaminants and toxicological assessment.  The class will emphasize fish toxicology. ( Mazik ).

WMAN 693.  Fish Physiology.  II. (Even years) 3 hr.  This course will cover all the physiological systems in fish.  Included are sensory, digestive, circulatory, nervous and endocrine, feeding, osmoregulation, movement, reproduction, and development systems. ( Mazik ).

WMAN 693.  Conservation Biology. II (odd years). 3 hr.  Restricted to graduate students.  Discussion of current topics in conservation biology, the applied science of maintaining the earth's biological diversity.  Emphasis is on current literature and each student presents a lecture on an assigned topic.  ( Wood ).

WMAN 770. Wildlife Seminar . II. 1 hr. per semester (4 hr. max.). PR: Consent. Graduate students prepare and give an oral presentation on their research in wildlife and fisheries management.  ( Wood ).

WMAN 425. Mammalogy. II (even years). 3 hr. PR: BIOL 102 or BIOL 117 or consent. Mammals and their biological properties with emphasis on life history, ecology, and distribution of regional forms.   ( Edwards ).

WMAN 426. Ornithology. II (odd years). 3 hr. PR: BIOL 102 or BIOL 117 or consent. Identification, distribution, and ecology of birds (particularly of forested lands). 2 hr. lec., 1 hr. lab.  ( Whitmore ).

WMAN 431. Wildlife Habitat Techniques. I. 3 hr. PR: Wildlife Major or consent; WMAN 150, WMAN 175, WMAN 224, WMAN 234, WMAN 313, FOR 205 FMAN311. Field and laboratory techniques necessary in management and study of wildlife; collection of field data, mapping, censusing, habitat evaluation, literature and scientific writing.  ( Anderson ).

WMAN 434. Forest Wildlife Management. II. 3 hr. PR: Wildlife major or consent. Major game animals and problems and principles involved in their management.  ( Edwards ).

WMAN 445. Introduction to Fisheries Management. I. 3 hr. PR: WMAN 224 or consent. Basic principles of management of fishery resources, with an emphasis on freshwater stocks. Includes current environmental and management issues, concepts, and methods used in management of commercial and recreational fisheries.  ( Petty ).

WMAN 446. Forest Limnology. II. 3 hr. PR: BIOL 102 or BIOL 117 or equivalent.  Physical, chemical, biological, and ecological properties of streams, rivers, and lakes.  ( Petty ).