Today, I wrapped up a final take-home exam for a course in Conservation Biology. Naturally, most of the questions were mundane ecological prose, asking me to respond in equally-mundane ecological prose. Which is what I have been taught to use. But the final question was a refreshing breath of air. It asked us to write a poem on our understanding of Landscape Ecology (my specialization, by some stroke of luck!) that addresses a few major concepts in the field. The list of concepts seemed…unpoetic. Restoration, rewilding, fragmentation, species extinction rates, island biogeography…how do you put such large words into a rhyme scheme? Of course, poetry is far more than simple rhyming, but I am no Tennyson – I’m more of an elementary-school level poet. After an hour of listening to the Hobbit soundtrack in hopes of catching a beat with an ecological flavour (mountains and fire are common themes in both Landscape Ecology and the Hobbit), I began crafting my masterpiece. I have taken the liberty of sharing it below: please enjoy!

Landscape Ecology Poem