ORNITHOLOGY

The study of Avian Biology

    Each spring I teach an introductory ornithology class (4000/5000 level) at UNC-Charlotte. The class is three credit hours with an optional lab from 8-11 AM on Tuesday mornings. Lectures are Tues/Thurs 11:30-1:45.

View this year's syllabus.

    Lectures review the birds of the world, emphasizing birds of the southeastern U.S., their evolution, behavior, ecology, and conservation. 

    Labs focus on bird identification and behavioral observations and often entail local field trips. One lab is spent on dissection. There is a full-day trip on a Saturday to the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro and an optional weekend outing to Huntington Beach State Park in the last half of April. During this trip, which coincides with the northward migration of many songbirds, we usually see over 100 species of birds.

View the cumulative list of species seen by this year's and previous classes on field trips.

2011 Review Questions 

*John James Audubon
*Ornithology in North America
*Important Names in Ornithology
Resources for Ornithologists
River of Raptors
Possible Term Paper topics
10 to know-The 10 most abundant species in Charlotte in the winter