Biology 405 Syllabus, Fall 2003

Instructor: Dr. Barbara Nicholson

Office: 221 Marcus White, Phone 832-2706

Email: Nicholsonb@CCSU.edu Web Address: www.ccsu.biology/Nicholson

Office Hours: Mon./Wed. 10:00-11:50, Wed. 1:30-2:30

Text: Ecology 4th edition, Robert E. Ricklefs and Gary L. Miller. W. H. Freeman and Company, New York. 1999.

Tentative Lecture Schedule

Introduction (not in text)

Text Part 3

Chapter 9 The Ecosystem Concept

Chapter 10 Energy Flow in Ecosystems

Chapter 11 Pathways of Elements in Ecosystems

Chapter 12 Nutrient Regeneration in Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecosystems

Chapter 13 Regulation of Ecosystem Function

Part 6

Chapter 26 Concept of the Community

Chapter 27 Structure of the Community

Chapter 28 Community Development

Chapter 29 Biodiversity

Part 7

Chapter 33 Sex

Chapter 34 Evolution and Social Behavior

Part 4

Chapter 17 Metapopulations

Chapter 19 Extinction, Conservation and Restoration

Remainder TBA

All exams will consist of a mixture of essay and short answer questions. I strongly advise not to miss an exam, as make-up exams will be difficult to arrange. Exams will be given at the following times:

Final grades will be calculated as follows: 50% lecture and final exams, 35% laboratory performance, 10% student seminar and discussions, 5% homework assignments.

It is the student's responsibility to be familiar with course material at the time of the testing and you have ample opportunity to prove yourself in this course; therefore extra credit is not available. To complete this course you are required to attend and participate in all field and lab work; analyze all data collected and write four scientific papers that discuss: a) structure of a woodland community, b) diversity and community structure of two rivers, c) competition and predation in protozoa populations. The seminar you will present (15 min.) will be on a paper or series of papers published in the recent ecological literature. You must get approval from the instructor for your selected topic and articles by Nov. 10th. The best journals from which you should select your papers and that are in Central's library are Ecology, Ecological Monographs, Applied Ecology, Conservation Biology, American Naturalist, Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, Journal of Ecology, and Journal of Animal Ecology. We will hold an ecology paper discussion group prior to the student seminars so students can get some practice in reading and interpreting the literature. This syllabus is to be considered as a general guide to the course. Times and dates for any of the lecture material, labs, and exams may be changed by the instructor. Students will be notified if there are any changes.

BIO 405 ECOLOGY LABORATORY SCHEDULE: FALL 2003

Date Subject

Sept. 4 Moss and lichen study in Stanley Quarter Park

Sept. 11 Moss and lichen study cont. in Stanley Quarter Park

Sept. 18 Community structure of a deciduous forest (Stanley Quarter Park)

Sept. 25 Succession in stream communities set up. Community structure of a deciduous forest

Oct. 2 Succession in stream communities cont. Data analysis of community structure

Oct. 9 Succession in stream communities cont.

Oct. 16 Succession in stream communities cont.

Oct. 23 Analysis and discussion of stream succession data

Oct 30 Begin competition and predation in protozoan populations

Nov. 5 Paper review and discussion

Nov. 13 TBA

Nov. 20 Protozoa data analysis

Nov. 27 Thanksgiving – No Lab

Dec. 4/11 Student seminars

Laboratory Procedures:

Data collection will be done in the field and laboratory, in groups. Each student needs to have his own copy of all of the laboratory data in order to analyze and write the scientific papers. The three scientific papers must be written individually. All papers must be analyzed and written using computer spreadsheets, statistical and graphic packages, and word processing. The Sciences Computer Lab (C277) has Mac and PC computers with a selection of software packages. Papers should be double-spaced, and have standard 1-inch margins, and a 12-pt. font size. Papers should not exceed 12 pages including figures, tables, and literature cited. A handout describing how to write a scientific paper will be given before you write your papers. All papers will undergo peer review before being submitted to the instructor for final grading. All scientific papers go through this process before publication. Each student must exchange with another student copies of their papers, and your peers will read, edit, and evaluate your paper before final submission.

Due dates for scientific papers are:

Oct. 12 #1 Community structure in a deciduous woodland

Nov. 9 #2 Succession in stream communities

Dec. 14 #3 Competition and predation in protozoan populations

Materials will not be accepted for grading after the due date without prior permission from the instructor.

You are reminded that when writing anything in this or any other course to give credit where credit is due and not to present another person's work without acknowledgment. Do not plagiarize. Direct quotes, summaries and all interpretations of another person's work should be formally or informally acknowledged in your papers. Penalties for failing to do so are outlined in the student handbook and will be adhered to during this course.

Attendance in this laboratory course is mandatory. In accordance with departmental policy, more than one unexcused absence from the lab will result in a failure from the course. In order for an absence to be excused, you must have a note from a medical professional or notification of a valid reason from the Office of Student Affairs (Rm. 103, Administration Building, phone 832-1602. If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to obtain class handouts from the instructor and notes from other students. The instructor will not permit students to make up any missed labs. Due to this Departmental Policy, attendance will be taken in every lab. The CCSU University policy and deadlines on course withdrawal will be adhered to. Only documented extenuating circumstances are legitimate reasons for withdrawal after the deadline.

Please make an appointment with me if:1)you need course adaptations or accommodations because of disability, 2) you have special emergency medical information to share with me, 3) you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated.

Assignments