LibGuides: BIO 245: Conservation Biology: Websites and Reference Books

Imagery

Swan Lake, Nicollet County, MN wetlands complex from the Minnesota River Basin Data Center

On the Web

Climate of Minnesota
"The DNR State Climatology Office manages, analyzes, and and disseminates Minnesota's climate information resources for the benefit of our citizens, communities, and entities."
GISIN
This international collaboration among scientists is an effort to track invasive species and provide information about their spread. It can be browsed by species or country or searched by a variety of variables.
Minnesota's Native Plant Communities
Explores the native plant habitats throughout the state of Minnesota. A part of the MN Department of Natural Resources site.
Minnesota Biological Survey
Explore a variety of topics and resources related to "plant and animal distribution as well as the ecology of native plant communities and functional landscapes."
Minnesota Native Plant Society
"A non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation and appreciation of Minnesota’s native plants and plant communities through education and public awareness."
Minnesota Prairie Conservation Plan
A part of the state of Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) site, this portion of the site explores prairie conservation plans for the state.
Minnesota Wildflowers: A Field Guide to the Flora of Minnesota
"Here you'll find photos and information about wild plants that grow in Minnesota, both native and non-native. More than just wildflowers, we also include trees, shrubs, vines, ferns and fern allies, and grasses, sedges and rushes."
National Invasive Species Information Center
A website created by the USDA that provides basic and up-to-date information about invasive species.
Native Plant Encyclopedia
Provided through the state of Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Native Plant Encyclopedia has a focus on shoreland plants and ecosystems in Minnesota.
Plants Database
From the USDA's National Resources Conservation Service, provides basic information about plants growing in the US, including images, species abstracts, growth distribution, growth data, and more. Includes sections on "culturally significant" plants and invasive species.
Society for Conservation Biology
"A global community of conservation professionals."
Tree of Life
A collaborative effort of scientists around the world to provide information about biodiversity, the characteristics of different groups of organisms, and their evolutionary history.

In the Reference Section

Textbooks digest and organize scientific findings into a systematic overview of knowledge. You can find similar coverage of issue in the library's reference section (on the main floor, by the windows on the Beck Hall side of the library). One useful feature of these kinds of sources is that they may list important primary science articles in their references - so you can identify the most influential classic books and articles.

Conservation (Earthscan Reference Collection) - Ref QH 76 .C657 2009
A collection of significant writings on the subject of conservation from John Muir and Henry David Thoreau to Arun Agrawal in four volumes arranged by topic - the idea of conservation, conservation of diversity, conservation and development, and the politics of conservation.
Encyclopedia of Biodiversity - Ref QH 541.15 .B56 E53 2001
Provides in-depth, scholarly articles on topics ranging from agriculture, conservation, economic aspects of biodiversity, microbial biodiversity, public policy, and systematics.
Encyclopedia of Biological Invasions - Ref QH 353 .E53 2011
In a single volume, this handbook provides scholarly overviews of topics related to invasive species including concepts such as habitat compatibility and succession, human interventions such as early detection and the SCOPE project, and specific species and families such as zebra mussels and earthworms.
Encyclopedia of Climate and Weather - Ref QC 854 .E523 2011
This set includes topics like: the processes that produce weather, the circulation of the atmosphere that generates the world's climates, classification of climates, scientific concepts used by climatologists and meteorologists, biographies of noteworthy contributors to the field, and significant weather events from extreme tropical cyclones to tornadoes to hurricanes.
Encyclopedia of Ecology - Ref QH 540.4 .E515 2008
Entries cover a range of topics, including: Behavioral Ecology, Ecological Processes, Ecological Modeling, Ecological Engineering, Ecological Indicators, Ecological Informatics, Ecosystems, Ecotoxicology, Evolutionary Ecology, General Ecology, Global Ecology, Human Ecology, and System Ecology.
Encyclopedia of Geobiology - Ref QH 343.4 .E52 2011
Defines important terms and concepts in an interdisciplinary field.
Encyclopedia of Global Warming and Climate Change - Ref QC981.8.G56 E47 2012
This 3-volume set contains over 750 articles covering the science and history of climate change, the polarizing controversies over climate-change theories, the role of societies, the industrial and economic factors, and the sociological aspects of climate change.
Encyclopedia of Sustainability - Ref GE 10 .C65 2010
Each volume in this three volume set covers a different context in which the term "sustainability" is used: environment and ecology, business and economics, and equity and fairness. Entries cover basic concepts and terms, as well as policy initiatives, controversies, and future trends. Volumes also include biographical sketches of important contributors to sustainability efforts from the scientific, economic, public policy, and activist realms, plus bibliographies.
International Encyclopedia of Geography: People, the Earth, Environment, and Technology - Ref G63 .I56 2017

What About Wikipedia?

Many students turn to Wikipedia for background information because it's easy to use, it's vast, and it has become so popular its articles often turn up within the first few links of a Web search. For some topics, particularly in the realm of popular culture, the articles can be uniquely valuable. However, there are two things to bear in mind.

First, because authorship is not limited to experts, but is open to anyone, there are times the articles are written by enthusiastic amateurs. Some articles are better than others.

Second, the quality varies considerably depending on who is interested in editing articles on a particular topic. Quite a number of scientists, lawyers, academics, and even college students have spent time improving articles on topics they understand well, but other subjects may have only skimpy articles. Apart from subjects, the Wikmedia Foundation that manages Wikipedia has expressed concern about the lack of diversity among editors, including a small percentage of editors who are women, which some feel results in uneven coverage of subjects of interest to or about women.

In general, Wikipedia is often a great place to get basic background information and often will provide links to useful sources. However, it is good for background only, not as a major source for a paper. Even its founder, Jimmy Wales, cautions students against using Wikipedia for research papers. He told a reporter, "If you are reading a novel that mentions the Battle of the Bulge, for instance, you could use Wikipedia to get a quick basic overview of the historical event to understand the context. But students writing a paper about the battle should hit the history books." In 2005, the prestigious science journal, Nature, caused a stir when it published an analysis that claimed science articles in Wikipedia contained an average of four mistakes, whereas the Encylopaedia Britannica contained three - something Britannica hotly denied. Nevertheless, for college research you should go beyond general encyclopedias, whether online or in print.

If you'd like to know more about Wikipedia, check out this article in The Atlantic. Or for a politically-barbed, satirical take, see how it was covered by The Colbert Report.