Course code: BIO-3003

Fish migration: Theory and technology

Se how you can apply

Apply between July 20 and August 9

Campus Tromsø

Semester / Year Autumn 2017

Credits 5

NOTE! This course belongs to a previous semester/year

About the course

Master course for biology students - principally aimed at MSc-students specializing in Freshwater Ecology. The course is available as a singular course.

Fishes migrate on different spatial and temporal scales, utilising the best suited habitat during different stages of the life cycle to increase individual fitness. The diadromous migrations of salmonids and eels between spawning and feeding habitats are well known examples. Humans have exploited fishes during their migrations for several thousand years, and many migrating species have a high economic value. During this course, insights will be given in ecological causes and evolutionary consequences of fish migrations, migration patterns, orientation, navigation, anthropogenic impacts, and with examples from a range of fish species in northern marine and freshwater systems. The course will also introduce the students to biotelemetry and other tag and tracking methods, with emphasis on use of radio and acoustic transmitters, manual tracking and use of automatic data logging stations, use of sensors measuring physiological and environmental factors, data storage tags, satellite pop-up archival tags, sampling design, tagging techniques, and ethics and animal welfare issues related to fish tagging.

Admission requirements

Local admission , application code 9371 - - Master`s level singular course.

Admission requires a Bachelor`s degree (180 ECTS) or equivalent qualification, with a major in biology of minimum 80 ECTS.

The course will be arranged with a munimum number of 7 students. Maximum participants: 20.

Objectives of the course

The students will have solid theoretical knowledge in ecological causes and evolutionary consequences of fish migrations, as well as in technologies used to study fish migrations. They will have insights in orientation and navigation mechanisms in fishes. They will further have a good understanding in how human impacts may influence fish migrations. The students will have specific knowledge in available telemetry and other tag and tracking methods. They will be able to select suitable methods, and to design and plan a fish migration study. They will have practical training in tagging and fish tracking methods, and be able to reflect on ethical and animal welfare issues related to such studies. After the course, the students will have a general understanding of fish migrations with specific examples from arctic and sub-arctic areas and broad knowledge on the available methods to study fish migrations in a variety of aquatic systems.

Credit reduction

If you pass the examination in this course, you will get an reduction in credits (as stated below), if you previously have passed the following courses:

BIO-8012 Fish migration: Theory and technology 5 stp

Teaching methods

Lectures, demonstrations and practical exercises. Two week intensive course, likely 16.-27. October 2017.

Language of instruction and examination

The language of instruction is English and all of the syllabus material is in English. Examination questions will be given in English, but may be answered either in English or a Scandinavian language.

Application deadline

Concerns only admission to singular courses: Applicants from Nordic countries: 1 June for the autumn semester and 1 December for the spring semester. Exchange students and Fulbright students: 1 October for the spring semester and 15 April for the autumn semester.

Assessment

Oral exam. A graded scale of five marks from A to E for pass and F for fail. There will be a re-sit examination for students that did not pass the previous ordinary examination.

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