++ broad and in depths biological expertise

++ in depths knowledge of biological working methods

++ data analysis skills

+ interdisciplinary thinking

+ critical and analytical thinking

++ independent searching and knowledge of scientific literature

++ data presentation and discussion in German and English (written and spoken)

+ teamwork

+ project and time management

+ statistics and scientific programming

The module comprises four required elective courses (6 CP each), two of which have to be chosen.

Required elective course 1: Laboratory course and seminar "Ecology of Colonial Seabirds" (6 CP) The Institute of Avian Research safeguards a long-term individual-based study on common terns: colonially breeding, migratory, piscivorous seabirds. Students spend a week at the colony (located at the Banter See in Wilhelmshaven) to ask a scientific question (e.g. about foraging behaviour, coloniality or courtship behaviour) and collect data to answer it, then spend a week analysing the data statistically, writing a short report in Biology Letters format and presenting their results to their peers. Students receive one mark for the report and one for the presentation and the final mark for the course will be the average of these two marks.

Required elective course 2: Laboratory course and seminar “Communication in Birds” (6 CP). Original recordings from bird songs will be used to generate new data  sets for the practical. From these recordings we will prepare  spectrograms and analyze the waveforms and frequency spectra. Techniques  and statistical method that allow to classify song types from  individuals or from populations will be introduced and applied. For  example, cluster analysis and discriminant analysis are statistical  methods to assess the dissimilarity between "objects" or song type  characteristics. The theoretical background for the practical is provided by the seminar using a standard text book on bird song Catchpole & Slater 2008).

Required elective course 3: Laboratory course and seminar “Japanese Quail” (6 CP).Observations and investigations of behaviour in relation to reproductive activity of male and female Japanese quail, at the Institute of Avian Research. Students will learn about theory regarding pace of life and exploration behaviour and develop predictions for inter-individual differences in exploration behaviour in relation to sex and reproductive activity. These predictions will be tested with standardized behavioural observations and measurements of food intake in the quail. The data will be analysed and discussed in the broader context of life-history theory.

Required elective course 1:

Becker PH, Frank D, Südman SR (1993) Temporal and spatial pattern of common tern (Sterna Hirundo) foraging in the Wadden Sea. Oecologia 93: 389-393.

González-Solís J, Sokolov E, Becker PH (2001) Courtship feedings, copulations and paternity in common terns Sterna hirundo. Animal Behaviour 61: 1125-1132

Required elective course 2:

Catchpole CK & Slater PJB (2008), "Bird Song, Biological themes and variations", Cambridge University Press, 2nd Edition

Required elective course 3:

Reale, D., Garant, D., Humphries, M.M., Bergeron, P., Careau, V., Montiglio, P.O. (2010) Personality and the emergence of the pace-of-life syndrome concept at the population level. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B, 365, 4051–4063.

Required elective course 4:

Bibby, Burgess, Hill (1995) Methoden der Feldonrithologie

Jonsson (1999) Die Vögel Europas und des Mittelmeerraumes

Südbeck, Andretzke, Fischer, Gedeon, Schikore, Schröder, Sudfeld (2012) Methodenstandards zur Erfassung der Brutvögel Deutschlands

Sutherland, Newton, Green (2004) Bird Ecology and Conservation: A Handbook of Techniques