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Rewilding is an exciting still emerging approach in nature conservation that focuses on the use of natural processes to restore degraded landscapes and ecosystems. The ultimate goal of rewilding is a nature-driven recovery of ecosystems so they are not dependent on intense human intervention. Rewilding projects are often concerned with re-introducing apex predators and keystone species but can also involve land abandonment and relaxation of management. The module will examine the role of rewilding in the contemporary nature conservation scene spanning terrestrial and aquatic environments. It will contrast rewilding with other conservation approaches and will examine the mechanisms that underlie rewilding success. Further, the importance of rewilding to ecosystem services will be considered in addition to approaches suited to monitoring rewilding projects and the importance of stakeholder engagement in successful rewilding delivery. In summary, the module will aim to give students an introduction to rewilding and its place, potential and constraints within the contemporary nature conservation scene. The module will be taught through a combination of in class lectures and seminars in term 2 and through a fieldcourse which will take place in term 3. The fieldcourse will take place in northern Britain and/or Sussex.

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Intended learning outcomes:

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At the end of the course students should be able to:

• understand different concepts and ideas in the rewilding field
• critically evaluate rewilding in relation to other more traditional approaches in nature conservation
• understand the place and constraints placed upon rewilding by geography, politics and human culture
• understand the ecological mechanisms that underlie rewilding success/failure including species interactions, role of disturbance, landscape connectivity (including wildlife corridors) and aquatic-terrestrial linkages
• understand the ecology of several keystone species central to rewilding projects including trees, beaver, wolf, wild boar, bear and lynx among others
• understand the importance of rewilding to ecosystems service provision
• gain practical experience of sampling landscapes subject to rewilding and be able to set up a study to assess the effectiveness of rewilding
• understand the current position of rewilding in environmental legislation and policy

The module aims to give students an introduction to rewilding and its place, potential and constraints within the contemporary nature conservation scene.

Please note that the cost of the field class to students is approximately £500.Ìý If student numbers fall below 10 this module may not run.