Multivariate Ecological Community Analysis II

Take your multivariate analysis skills to the next level by building upon the professional understanding and capability attained in MECA I.  This course takes you through the defensible ten-step process for performing, interpreting, and communicating defensible analyses for the most widely used free ordination techniques (PCA, NMS, NMS Scores), classification procedures (Cluster Analysis, TWCA), group testing tools (MRPP, PerMANOVA, SumF, ISA), association assessments (Mantel Test, Compare Scores), and trait analyses (functional diversity metrics, FCA).  Plus, the strengths and weaknesses of other commonly encountered tools (e.g., RA, DCA, TWINSPAN, PCoA, dbRDA) are explored, tips are given on how to apply and interpret graphing tools to ordination diagrams, and the procedure for bootstrapping multivariate analyses is outlined.

Learn at your your own pace with or without instructor support (see Online Course Format Chart below for details).

Spring: March 3 - May 25, 2025 (Early bird ends Feb 2nd)

Summer: June 2 - August 24, 2025 (Early bird ends May 4th)

Fall: Sept 2-Nov 23, 2025 (Early bird ends Aug 4th)

*Early bird saves $75

MECA I.  If you have previously taken Jeri Peck’s “Multivariate Data Analysis, Using PC‑ORD” short-course or Bruce McCune’s “Community Structure and Analysis” course, you can request to take the MECA I final exam to test out of this prerequisite for a fee.

• Learn on your own and at your own pace over the 3-month term as you watch 37 prerecorded lectures, read up on the covered topics in the required textbook (see below), and watch and perform 19 practice exercises using the PC-ORD software.  After each lesson, take a brief knowledge-check quiz before moving on.

• Required Textbook (covers MECA I & II):  Peck, J.E.  2016.  Multivariate Analysis for Ecologists:  Step-by-Step, second edition. https://www.wildblueberrymedia.net/store/step-by-step

• Required Software (covers MECA I & II):  PC-ORD version 7, which was written by and for ecologists applying multivariate analyses.  A discounted purchase price for a perpetual license has been negotiated for our students. https://www.wildblueberrymedia.net/store/pc-ord-7-single-user-license-student-user

TOPICS

• Free ordination methods:

  • principal components analysis

  • principal coordinates analysis

  • nonmetric multidimensional scaling

• NMS scores

• Agglomerative clustering

• Choosing the optimal level of clustering

• Group‐testing methods:

  • multi‐response permutation procedures, blocked MRPP

  • distance-based MANOVA

• SumF

• Indicator Species Analysis, blocked ISA

• Trait-based analyses:

• Functional Diversity

• Fourth Corner Analysis

• Advanced graphing and communication tools

• Bootstrapping

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After taking this course, students will be able to:

• Choose among PCA and NMS to address analysis objectives

• Choose among MRPP, PerMANOVA, and SumF to address analysis objectives

• Recognize when to apply trait-based analyses

• For PCA, PCO, NMS, NMS Scores, clustering, MRPP, PerMANOVA, SumF, ISA, Mantel Test, Compare Scores, Functional Diversity, and Fourth Corner Analysis

  • recognize their strengths and weaknesses

  • understand their analysis steps

  • perform the basis analyses using appropriate setup options

  • interpret the analysis output

• Apply a variety of approaches to objectively ‘cut’ a dendrogram

• Use output and graphs to present and report findings

• Bootstrap (especially PerMANOVA)

FORMAT:

• 3 months of access to course materials as you work at your own pace 

CONTINUING EDUCATION:

• 16 CEUs with The Wildlife Society

• 4 CEUs in Category I(a): Scientific Education and Training with the Ecological Society of America

• Go to our Continuing Education Page for more details

FORMAT:

• 3 months of access to course materials as you work at your own pace 

• Get instructor support for the 3-month term via email, discussion threads, group meetings, and one-on-one appointments

• After working through the course materials, set up an optional meeting with the instructor to discuss your own personal project from work or school

CONTINUING EDUCATION:

• 16 CEUs with The Wildlife Society

• 4 CEUs in Category I(a): Scientific Education and Training with the Ecological Society of America

• Go to our Continuing Education Page for more details

CERTIFICATIONS:

• Earn 1 credit toward certification as an Associate/Certified Wildlife Biologist® (at any level) with The Wildlife Society

FORMAT:

• 12 months of access to course materials as you work at your own pace 

• Get instructor support for the 3-month term via email, discussion threads, group meetings, and one-on-one appointments

• After working through the course materials, set up an optional meeting with the instructor to discuss your own personal project from work or school

CONTINUING EDUCATION:

• 16 CEUs with The Wildlife Society

• 4 CEUs in Category I(a): Scientific Education and Training with the Ecological Society of America

• Go to our Continuing Education Page for more details

CERTIFICATIONS:

• Earn 1 credit toward certification as an Associate/Certified Wildlife Biologist® (at any level) with The Wildlife Society

• Earn 1 credit towards a professional certificate in Applied Quantitative Ecology with CWS

ACADEMIC CREDIT:

• Earn 1 academic credit (go to our Academic Credit Page for details)

• Earn an additional 1-2 academic credits with an Applied Project