This field course will be held based at the Millport Field Centre on the Isle of Cumbrae in the Firth of Clyde. The centre, run by the Field Studies Council, is located on an island which is a ten-minute ferry crossing from the mainland terminal at Largs. The island has a variety of types of coastal habitat within easy reach of the field centre and the biota is correspondingly varied. Being within the semi-enclosed waters of the Firth of Clyde the habitats are comparatively sheltered and safe.

The Field Centre provides modern accommodation and classrooms for lectures/seminars and labwork to process field samples. The centre also has a small research vessel, which provides an opportunity for you to experience marine biological sampling at sea, and to see oceanographic and navigational instruments typical of a modern inshore research and survey vessel.

There is a long history of marine biological research and teaching at Millport (a marine station was first established there in 1885). You will follow in the footsteps of generations of biologists in learning about coastal organisms and habitats, and the methods used to study them in the field.

Details of the course content may vary according to the weather, tides and other factors, but it is expected that the course will include surveying at least one rocky shore and a scientifically renowned sandy shore, sampling seabed organisms and plankton from a research vessel, and a group project carried out over two days. Most activities involve follow-up work in a laboratory classroom.

You will keep a field notebook as a record of your work, and on the last evening of the course, contribute to a group presentation on your mini-project. Feedback is provided on both of these.

Course aims

The course has the following main aims:

• to introduce you to quantitative and qualitative methods of investigating the biota and habitat characteristics of littoral (shore) and sublittoral (nearshore, continuously submerged) marine habitats;
• to expose you to a broad range of marine taxa, especially invertebrates, but including vertebrates and algae, sampled from their natural habitats;
• to consider adaptations to environment, systematic relationships and, where appropriate, economic or conservation significance of littoral and sublittoral marine organisms;
• to acquire skills in sampling methods, species identification, data handling and presentation of field investigations;
• to develop skills in teamwork, oral presentation, and critical appraisal in the context of group project work.

Teaching pattern

An important general principle is that marine biological fieldwork is expensive and may be disrupted unexpectedly by adverse weather or logistical problems, so it is important to make the most of the time available. Fieldwork commonly therefore involves short periods of intense activity, long hours and a willingness to be adaptable when circumstances necessitate a change in plans. With this in mind, the teaching pattern will be flexible depending on the timing of low tide and other factors. Typically, there will be fieldwork early in the morning followed by a break, then sample and data processing in the laboratory. Work usually needs to continue into the evening to complete sample processing, to collate and review the results of a survey, to carry out more fieldwork, or to write up your field notebook. There will be briefings about field exercises and seminars to review survey results, but there will be no formal lectures. There will also be time to rest and socialise.

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

More Information about Week Numbers

There are no assessments for this course.