BY 380 QUANTITATIVE ECOLOGY
FALL 1998
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Patricia L. Kennedy LECTURES: TR 3:35 - 4:50 NR106
OFFICE HOURS: Wagar 241; Monday 1:00 – 5:00, or by appt. By Monday morning of each week I post an appointment sign-up sheet on the bulletin board next to my office. You can use this to sign-up for meetings during my office hours. If you cannot meet during my office hours you can contact me via email to set-up an appointment.
PREREQUISITES (ENFORCED): M155 and one course in biology
EMAIL: pkadvise@cnr.colostate.edu
TEACHING ASSISTANT: Craig McCarty OFFICE: 205 Wagar EMAIL: cmccarty@lamar.colostate.edu
WEB PAGE: http://lamar.colostate.edu/~cmccarty
TEXT: Ricklefs, Robert E. The Economy of Nature, Fourth Edition; Gotelli, N. J. A Primer of Ecology, 2nd edition.
SUPPLIES: A calculator that can calculate logarithms. You will need to bring it to each exam. Sharing calculators will not be allowed in an exam.
Course Objective
To introduce students to the concepts and models of ecology, so they can use these them as tools with which to understand the natural world. Useful understanding is preferred over rote memorization. By the end of this course students should be able to solve basic problems in ecology, and should be able to understand the foundations and objectives of most papers in scientific journals of ecology.
EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY: Students are responsible for their education, including regular attendance in class, reading the assigned text before the date listed in the syllabus, and pursuing answers to questions and confusing issues. I strongly encourage questions during my lectures, before and after lectures, during my office hours and via email. No question is too small, no question is silly -- if something has occurred to you, 10 other shy students may be wondering the same thing. Discussions help all of us.
| DATE | SUBJECT | CHAPTERS (Ricklefs unless otherwise indicated |
| T 25 Aug | Introduction to the Science of Ecology | Chapter 1 |
| R 27 Aug. | How is Ecology Studied? | Chapter 1 |
| T 1 Sept | The Physical Environment | Chapter 2 |
| R 3 Sept | Adaptations to Physical Environ. | Chapter 3, and pp205-213 |
| T 8 Sept | Variations - Phys. Environ. | Chapter 4 |
| R 10 Sept. | The Biome Concept | Chapter 5 |
| T 15 Sept | Energy in the Ecosystems | Chapter 6 |
| R 17 Sept | Energy in the Ecosytems | Chapter 6 |
| T 22 Sept | Nutrient Pathways | Chapter 7 |
| R 24 Sept | Nutrient Pathways | Chapter 7 |
| T 29 Sept | 1st MIDTERM EXAM | |
| R 1 Oct - Guest Lecture - Dr. Van Horne | Life Histories | Chapter 11 |
| T 6 Oct | Sex | Chapter 12 |
| R 8 Oct | Family and Society | Chapter 13 |
| T 13 Oct | Organismal Biology concluded | |
| R 15 Oct. | Population Structure | Chapter 14 |
| T 20 Oct | Population Growth - Geometric | Chapter 15, pp 326-329, pp 335-339 and Gotelli pp 1-11, 20-23 and problems 1-4 |
| R 22 Oct | Population regulation/Logistic Growth | Chapter 15-pp340-348, Gotelli - pp 26-32 and 41-48 and Problems 1-3. |
| T 27 Oct | Age-structured population growth | Chapter 15, pp 329-335 and Gotelli - Chapter 3 - pp50-61 |
| R 29 Oct | Population Dynamics concluded | |
| T 3 Nov | 2nd Midterm Exam | |
| R 5 Nov | Population Genetics | Chapter 17 |
| T 10 Nov. | Relationships among species | Chapter 18 |
| R 12 Nov | Competition | Chapter 19 |
| T 17 Nov | Community Structure | Chapter 22; Gotelli - pp 156-159 |
| R 19 Nov | Succession, Fire | Chapter 23 |
| THANKSGIVING BREAK | ||
| T 1 Dec | Biodiversity | Chapter 24 |
| R 3 Dec | Biogeography | Chapter 25 |
| T 8 Dec. - Guest Lecture - Dr. Will Clements | Extinction | Chapter 26 |
| R Dec. 10 | Global Ecology | Chapter 27 |
| T 15 Dec. | FINAL EXAM | 11:20am - 1:20 pm |
Quizzes and Group Exercises
There will be about 15 unannounced in-class quizzes at the beginning of lecture. Students are required to supply their own blank sheet of paper for this (bring one every day!). Quizzes will be based on the reading or lecture material from the previous lecture. In some cases, group exercises will be substituted for quizzes. In group exercises you will work in small groups (3 students), I will give you a problem at the end of class related to the days lecture and you will work as a group to solve the problem in class (15 min exercise).
Assignments
Three assignments will be given during the semester. The purpose of these assignments is to give you an opportunity to discover ecology as a living science. In the first assignment you will be required to read original literature, write a review of the literature and gain experience in peer-editing and solve quantitative ecological problems. The second and third assignments will be quantitative problems that will provide you with practice at solving quantitative ecological problems.
Final Exam
The final examination will cover material from the entire course and is scheduled for 11:20am-1:20 pm on Tuesday 15 December in the classroom.
MISSED EXAMS, LATE ASSIGNMENTS: NO MAKEUP EXAMS OR QUIZZES WILL BE GIVEN. IF YOU MISS AN EXAM, QUIZ OR GROUP EXERCISE YOU WILL GET A ZERO FOR THAT EVENT. ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE PENALIZED 10% PER DAY STARTING AT 4:50 PM THE DAY THE ASSIGNMENT IS DUE.
Grades
Grades will be determined on the basis of total points.
1st Exam 100 points
1st Assignment 30 points
2nd Exam 100 points
2nd Assignment 100 points
3rd Assignment 30-50 points
Final Exam 200 points
Quizzes and
Group Exercises 150 points (approx.)
NOTE: I will drop your lowest quiz/group exercise score from your grade.
Out of approx. 740 possible points your grade will be determined as possible:
A = > 90% of total points
B = 80-89% of total points
C = 70-79% of total points
D = 60-69% of total points
F = < 60% of total points
I do not use +/- grading.
Any student who exhibits academic dishonesty such as cheating, assisting cheaters, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information, will be given an F in the class and recommended for expulsion from CSU. See page 31 in the CSU Catalogue for detailed definitions of plagiarism and cheating.