WILDLIFE ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
The mission of the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation is to foster education, expand knowledge, and reward scholarship, using multi-disciplinary approaches, for the purpose of understanding, managing, and conserving biological resources. The primary goal of our teaching, research, and extension programs is to develop and communicate the knowledge necessary for enhancing the conservation and management of wildlife and their habitats for the greatest aesthetic, ecological, economic, and recreational values.
WEC Blog

The Crucial Role of Prescribed Fire in Land Management
For centuries, wildfire has played a vital role in shaping our natural areas, creating a cycle of growth and decay. Prescribed fire mimics the cycle of natural fire in a controlled manner, proving to be an essential tool for land managers to...

Natural Areas Recreation: Planning for Possibilities
Florida is a popular tourist destination, averaging over 140 million visitors annually. Approximately half of visitors go to a natural area as part of their vacation. Many Florida residents also recreate locally in natural areas. Across the...

Protecting Florida’s Unique Biodiversity
What is Biodiversity? Biodiversity is an abbreviation of the term “biological diversity”. It encompasses the variety of life on Earth, including genetic, species, and ecosystem variation. New species are being discovered every year, including...