Marine Zoology (FHL/BIOL 430, 5 credits) & Marine Botany (FHL 440/BIOL 445, 5 credits)

Instructors: Dr. Megan Dethier and Dr. Tom Mumford

The Zoology and Botany courses survey marine invertebrates, algae and marine vascular plants represented in the San Juan Archipelago emphasizing and integrating these group’s natural history, ecology, and taxonomy. Frequent local intertidal field trips to a variety of habitats allow students to study organisms in their natural environments, and dredging collection trips permit exploration of subtidal systems. Lectures are followed by detailed laboratory study of live organisms often collected by the student. All students also perform organized outreach activities with local schools.

A 4-day field trip to an exposed rocky coast enables study of the organisms on wave-swept shores.

No textbooks are required for these courses.

Research in Marine Biology (FHL 470, 6 credits)

Instructor: Dr. Spencer Fire, associate professor at the Florida Institute of Technology

The Research in Marine Biology course will introduce students to the essential elements of how to design, conduct, and communicate the results of a basic marine science research study. The students will also carry out a basic field-based research study and have the opportunity to apply these elements and experience the process of original research from start to finish. The course will cover 1) scientific ethics, 2) reading scientific articles, 3) experimental design/sampling design and hypothesis testing, 4) data management, and 5) basic statistics for drawing valid conclusions from analyses. Students’ course projects will include field trips to collect environmental/organismal data, and will engage with the peer-review process of writing and revising multiple drafts of a research paper, to fine-tune how their results are presented to the scientific community.

No textbook is required for this course.

UW students enrolled in this course will earn (W) credit.

UW students Marine Biology majors enrolled in this course will earn an integrative field experience (IFE) credit. 

UW students with a GPA of 3.0+ and are enrolled in FHL 470 are eligible to apply to the Mary Gates Endowment for FHL

Marine Sciences Seminar (FHL 490, 1 credit)

There will be one lecture per week by research scientists. The topics will cover different fields of research. Participation is obligatory for registered students wanting to gain credits, but all students are encouraged to attend. No textbook required.