Geology and Ecology of the Bahamas
Spring Break 2008: March 1 - March 9 (tentative dates)
Program Location
The course is based at the Gerace Research Center (www.geraceresearchcenter.com) on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. On San Salvador you will observe modern reef, beach, and estuarine environments and compare their observations to similar environments preserved in the rock record. Biological processes are ultimately responsible for many of the geological features of the Bahamas, so the course considers the biology of marine organisms in addition to geological topics.
Academic Program
This course explores the geology and marine ecology of the shallow water marine environment by examining the preeminent modern example, the Bahamas platform. Shallow-water carbonate environments were widespread in the geologic past, and a significant volume of the bedrock in North America is from sediment that was deposited in a warm shallow-water environment that was in many ways very similar to that of the modern Bahamian archipelago. The Bahamas provides an excellent model for understanding and interpreting both modern and ancient reefs.
GEOL 398 requires attendance and participation at a series of lectures prior to departure to the Bahamas, an exam over assigned reading and lecture discussions, keeping a field notebook during the Bahamas trip that is graded, one post-field trip meeting and compiling an illustrated field guide to San Salvador Island, based on the field notebook. This course meets every Tuesday, 4:40-6:10 p.m. before Spring Break.
Instructional methods include lectures, field work, journal assignment and/or papers and tests/exams.
Tentative course offerings:
GEOL 398 Geology and Ecology of the Bahamas, 3 credits
Accommodations
Students will reside in residence halls/dormitories at the research center on San Salvador Island, Bahamas. Group meals will be provided.
Program Costs
For the current projected costs for this program, please click on the following link to the Fees for JMU Study Abroad Programs page.
Application
For more detailed instructions and to download the application, please click on the following link to the Applications and Forms section for JMU Short-Term Programs.
Applicants must have Sophomore standing or above, consent of instructor, Physical Geology or Oceanography, and at least 4 hours of additional lab science.
For More Information
For additional information about the Geology and Ecology of the Bahamas program, please contact the program director:
Stephen A. Leslie
Professor and Department Head
Geology & Environmental Science
Tel: 540-568-6144
E-mail: lesliesa@jmu.edu
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