Biology: Sky Islands Biodiversity

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PROGRAM FEE: $3,437 Winter travel course; App Deadline: 9/5/2025; On-location Program fee $3,887 minus $450 deposit; Airfare is additional dates 1/1/2026-1/10/2026; Location: Arizona Tuition is additional; Out of Pocket Expenses (approx. $805) are additional. PACE students with permission and override Special Topics courses cannot carry CC designations

This course offers an immersive field experience in the Sky Islands of southern Arizona, a hotspot of ecological diversity where the Sonoran desert meets the mountains. Students will explore how elevation shapes species distributions and ecosystem dynamics through guided hikes and fieldwork, biodiversity surveys, hands-on ecological observations, analysis of citizen science data, and group discussions. The course introduces key concepts in biogeography, evolutionary ecology, community ecology, and conservation challenges in the context of climate change. With a focus on experiential learning, students will gain an understanding of the major processes governing elevational and latitudinal biodiversity gradients and practical skills in field ecology while examining the impacts of climate change and human activity on these unique ecosystems. Students will also learn about some of the human history and human ecology of the region, from the lives and culture of the Tohono O’odham Nation to colonization and settlement by Europeans.

The Sky Islands course will meet daily for the travel period following the planned schedule below. This schedule is subject to change based on weather conditions, travel delays, or other emergent circumstances. Course activities will consist of lectures, hikes and biodiversity surveys at multiple elevations and ecosystems, group discussions of primary literature, and analysis of citizen science data. Students will complete a final reflection connecting what they learned in the Sky Islands back to our home in the Green Mountains of Vermont.

Experiential learning makes up most of the course activities. We will be spending our days hiking, conducting biodiversity surveys, and going to museums, with evenings typically reserved for group discussions and assignments. Electronic course materials (readings and assignments) will be provided in Brightspace. Students should be prepared for long days outside. Students will be evaluated on data assignments (using R to analyze data gathered during the course and/or citizen science data, accompanied by a short written report), field notes and reflections, participation, discussions, and a final paper and a final reflection due after we return from Arizona.