Online
£105.00
4 hours
3 modules
Introductory
Purchase this course

This self study course on Great Crested Newts provides a comprehensive introduction to the species, its ecology and how to survey for them.

Great Crested Newts are widespread across lowland England and occupy a range of habitats, in rural, suburban and urban areas. Although they breed in ponds, they spend much of their life on land. They are also fully protected by law. Great crested newts are commonly present on development sites or during vegetation clearance. Therefore it is important that ecologists and land managers know how to survey for them and have a good understanding of their ecology. This course is a good basis for gaining a survey licence (experience also required).

Course content:

This is an introductory level course suitable for those working in consultancy or conservation. The course will cover the following topics:

  • Ecology and habitat requirements
  • Newt identification
  • Legislation and licences
  • Survey techniques
  • Habitat Suitability Index

At the end of the course you will do a short quiz and if you get over 70% you will get a Certificate.

Courses modules:

Module 1

GCN Ecology

Module 2

GCN Surveying

Module 3

GCN Ecology and Surveying END OF COURSE QUIZ

This course is two videos:

Part 1 covers Ecology, identification, legislation, threats, habitat management and diseases. Run time 1hr 34 mins.

Part 2 covers surveying for GCN including bottle trapping, netting, egg searching, torching, eDNA sampling and Habitat Suitability Index assessments. Run time 35 mins.

You will also be provided with the Great Crested Newt Conservation Handbook, the HSI instructions and Calculator and the Amphibian Habitat Management Handbook as handouts.

Here’s what our students are saying:

The course was great! I really enjoyed it and it’s made me even more enthusiastic about becoming an ecologist and being able to do things like this full time. I’m really looking forward to hopefully being able to gain some practical experience this year to go alongside it
Rachel
I liked the ability to undertake the course at my own pace.
Naomi
The teaching is excellent. It’s clear, precise and easy to follow. The knowledge from Sue is fantastic and it’s taught in a very understandable way with no rush. It’s been really good and I feel I’ve been able to retain the information well because of the way the course has been taught.
Max
Very informative, enjoyed the content!
Suzy
Thank you for the course, it has been very informative and helpful for me
EW
I liked the course, it was very comprehensive. I’m surprised how much I enjoyed the online elements of the course, I thought I would do better in a face to face course but honestly being able to go at my own pace is really working for me as I can spend time on the bits I find tricky as they come up rather than making a note to look things up later… I like the YouTube videos, being able to pause or even speed up the video to match my pace works well for me. I do feel like I learnt a lot. I would 100% recommend the course to others
SC
Depth of knowledge was excellent.
Alister
Useful links, detailed information, great supporting photos
Claire

FAQs

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The final exam is designed to test whether you have learned the appropriate knowledge and skills during this course. If you take the final exam and do not pass, we encourage you to review the course material and ensure you have read, understood and remembered the lessons. We want you to get the most out of this course and provide you with the knowledge and confidence you need to apply what you learn to your job or career. You may retake the final test once you have revisited the course material.

Yes! We want you to get as much out of this course as possible. We encourage you to refer back to your course materials from time to time to refresh your memory and ensure that you are confident on the subject. Therefore, when you purchase this course, you will have lifetime access to the course materials.