In addition to employing new evidence-based teaching techniques in Introductory Ecology, instructors might benefit from linking concepts to subjects with which our students are familiar. Throughout much of the North America, White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are common mammals to which our students often have a connection through sightings, hunting, or unfortunate automobile encounters. Students are often surprised by how compelling these large animals in our backyards can be. Deer have an interesting relationship to humans, fascinating mating behaviors, and interesting population dynamics. Human hunters are their main predator throughout much of their range and we exert strong selective pressures on them.
Results/Conclusions
In this talk, I will discuss activities I use in my Introductory Ecology course using white-tailed deer to link disparate subjects in ecology including: evolution, ecosystem ecology, behavior, trophic interactions, life history strategies, population biology, and wildlife management. With these activities, I have been engaging the students at many levels of Bloom’s taxonomy with encouraging outcomes.