ECOLOGY Macalester College Fall 2017

ECOLOGY Macalester College Fall 2017 Ecology is the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and their environment. Integrating information from across many scientific disciplines, the applications of Ecology include conservation, habitat restoration, natural resource management, climate change adaptation, and a wide variety of environmental and agricultural policies, as well as issues in human health and quality of life. Biology 285/Environmental Studies 285 (Ecology) is a comprehensive introductory ecology course. In this class, you will be introduced to the principal ideas and theories currently engaging population, community, and ecosystem ecologists. You will also examine a variety of environmental problems from an ecological perspective. We will cover both terrestrial and aquatic systems, however the primary emphasis will be on terrestrial ecology. In addition to learning about ecology through lectures and readings, you will have the opportunity to conduct ecological research in the field and greenhouse/lab and be introduced to a variety of research techniques used by ecologists, including observation, measurement, sampling, and analysis. You will also be introduced to scientific writing and other tools, e.g. experimental design, statistical analysis, and computer modeling. Welcome! INSTRUCTORS: Lecture Laura Phillips-Mao Office Hours: M/W 2:00-3:00 pm, or by appointment Office: Olin-Rice 220 Phone: 651-696-6846 Email: lphillip@macalester.edu Lab Mike Anderson Office Hours: by appointment Office: Olin-Rice 115 Phone: 651-696-6230 Email: andersonm@macalester.edu TA Weekly Study Session: TBA Brittney Millman Email: bmillma1@macalester.edu LECTURE & LAB SCHEDULE: Lecture: MWF 8:30 9:30 Olin-Rice 250 Lab: Th 8:00-11:10 am (Sec. 1) / Th 1:20 4:30 (Sec. 2) Olin-Rice 284 Attendance in lecture is highly recommended. Please be on time for lecture. Late arrivals are disruptive to your instructor and classmates. Lab attendance is required! You will use the weekly laboratory time to engage in a variety of activities, including field trips, research, workshops in statistics and computer modeling, and student presentations. More information about the lab schedule and activities can be found on the Ecology lab Moodle page. 1

REQUIREMENTS SATISFIED: This course is required for a Biology Major at Macalester. It also meets course requirements for a Biology Minor, one of the natural science requirements for an Environmental Studies Major, and 4 credits of the college s Natural Science Requirement. (Note: This course will also likely carry a Q2 designation and contribute to meeting the quantitative reasoning requirement for graduation. More information on this is forthcoming.) TEXTS & RESOURCES: The textbook for this course is Ecology 4 th Edition (Bowman, Hacker & Cain 2017). A hardbound copy of the textbook can be purchased at the Highlander Bookstore. Alternatively, you may purchase an e-book version (at substantially lower cost) via: https://www.redshelf.com/book/750515/ecology-750515-9781605356983-william-d-bowmansally-d-hacker-michael-l-cain At least one copy of the 4 th Edition textbook will be on reserve at the DeWitt Wallace Library, via the MCSG s Textbook Reserve Program. Multiple copies of the older 2 nd Edition of this text (Cain et al. 2011) are also on reserve, however they are missing a new chapter on Behavioral Ecology (Chapter 8 in the 4 th Edition), and thus chapter and page numbers will not align with assigned readings. If you have concerns about accessing the textbook, please contact the instructor (Laura Phillips-Mao). Additional readings, including scholarly journal articles and ecological stories in the media, will be assigned throughout the course, both for class discussion and to supplement the lectures. These will be made available via the course Moodle site. COURSE MOODLE SITE: The course Moodle site will be updated throughout the semester with announcements, readings and other assignments, helpful resources, items of interest, and schedule changes (as needed). Please check the Moodle page frequently for the most current course information. (Note: there is a separate Moodle page for the Ecology lab please refer to the lab Moodle page for the lab syllabus, lab schedule, etc.) EXAMS, ASSIGNMENTS & GRADING: There will be 2 mid-term exams during the course in addition to a comprehensive final exam. The exams will cover lecture material, activities, and assigned readings. Attendance at all exams is required. An absence on exam day will result in a grade of ZERO for the exam unless arrangements are made with Professor Phillips-Mao at least one day prior to the exam. If you must miss an exam due to your own illness, a death in the family, or a family emergency, you must notify the instructor in advance or within 24 hours after the exam. You will need to provide some form of documentation (e.g. doctor s note) in order to make up the exam. Make-up exams will not be allowed without such documentation. Make-up exams may be different from the standard exam. The final exam is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 16 (8:00-10:00am). You must arrange your end-of-semester travel plans so that you can take the exam at the scheduled time. Throughout the semester, you will work with fellow students to create a National Public Radio (NPR) style science sound-bite podcast on an ecology topic of your choosing. The format is modeled on the NPR program RadioLab (http://www.radiolab.org/series/podcasts/). You will receive further information about this project on Moodle. 2

Some lecture days will be dedicated to class discussion of ecological journal articles. On these days, you may be required to respond (via Moodle) to a few questions about the reading prior to class in order to prepare for the discussion. Additionally, on each discussion day, you will write memos to one or more classmates addressing topics related to ecology. While these are not strictly graded per se, your final grade will be affected if you do not participate in the memo exchange. Late memos will not be accepted. Failure to turn in a memo will result in a 2-point deduction from the course total. Finally, you will be required to share with the class at least one connection that you make between course material and your life, your other coursework, stories in the media, current world events, etc. This sharing process is fairly informal more of a conversation than a formal presentation (no PowerPoint required!). At the start of most lecture periods, students will be invited to share their connections with the class. On the day(s) that you share your connection in class, you will submit a brief written summary of your connection via Moodle after class. Due to time limitations, we will generally be limited to 1-3 students sharing a connection on any given day. Do not wait until the end of the semester, or you risk us running out of time for your connection! Your overall course grade will be based on your performance on exams (50%), the quality of your lab work assignments, written reports, and presentations (30%) and your podcast assignment (15%), and your participation in class discussions, memo exchanges, and sharing connections (5%). Attendance in lab is required; any missed labs/field trips will result in a 20-point deduction (per session missed) from the semester s point total. Attendance in lecture is highly recommended. Each missed discussion will result in a 5-point deduction from the semester total. ACCOMODATIONS & POLICIES: I am strongly committed to supporting the learning of all students in my class. If you are experiencing any barriers to your learning that I can mitigate, please bring them to my attention as soon as possible. I am happy to work with you to find reasonable accommodations that can facilitate your learning and enjoyment of the class. If you need disability related accommodations please contact the Disability Services Office at your earliest convenience. The Director of Disability Services, Allie Quinn, coordinates services for any student in need of accommodations. You may schedule an appointment by calling the Disability Services Office, 651-696-6874. I expect all students to perform their work with honesty, academic integrity, and respect for everyone in the classroom. Violations of Macalester s policies on academic integrity will be taken seriously, as described on the Academic Programs website: https://www.macalester.edu/academicprograms/academicpolicies/academicintegrity/ ADDITIONAL HELPFUL INFORMATION: Mark Davis, recently retired Professor of Biology at Macalester, has written a number of excellent Useful Flyers of Information (UFI s) covering a variety of how to topics related to reading and writing scientific literature (including how to write course Memos). These resources can be found at: https://www.macalester.edu/~davis/ufis.html 3

Lecture Schedule (Subject to change - please check Moodle!) Week Day Date Unit Topic Readings* & Deadlines W Sept. 6 Introduction Course Intro & Intro to Ecology Ecology Ch. 1 (p. 2-20) 1 F Sept. 8 Evolution & Ecology Intro to Ecology & Population Genetics Ecology Ch. 6 (p. 136-148) M Sept. 11 Population Genetics (cont.) 2 W Sept. 13 Natural Selection F Sept. 15 Evolution & Speciation Ecology Ch. 6 (p. 148-157) Life Histories, Behavior, & Coping with Life Histories Ecology Ch. 7 (p. 160-181) M Sept. 18 Environment 3 W Sept. 20 Life Histories (cont.) and Behavioral Ecology Ecology Ch. 8 (p. 182-202) Ecology Ch. 2 (22-49) and Coping with the Physical Environment F Sept. 22 Ch. 4 (84-108 ) M Sept. 25 Discussion 1 & Intro to Podcast Assignment 4 W Sept. 27 Population Ecology Populations - Distribution & Abundance Ch. 9 (p. 204-225) F Sept. 29 Population Growth Ch. 10 (p. 226-247) M Oct. 2 Population Growth (cont.) Podcast description + 5 Limits to Population Growth W Oct. 4 contract due F Oct. 6 Population Dynamics (Extinctions, Metapopulations) Ch. 11 (p. 247-269) M Oct. 9 Discussion 2 & Exam Review W Oct. 11 ** EXAM 1 ** 6 Ch. 14 (p. 317-335) Species Interactions Competition F Oct. 13 Podcast Bibliography Due M Oct. 16 Predation Ch. 12 (p. 272-293) 7 W Oct. 18 Predation (cont.) - Herbivory F Oct. 20 Parasitism Ch. 13 (p. 294-316) M Oct. 23 Coevolution, Mutualism & Commensalism Ch. 15 (p. 338-353) 8 Discussion 3 W Oct. 25 Podcast Promo Due F Oct. 27 * * * * * * * * FALL BREAK - NO CLASS * * * * * * * * Ch. 3 (p. 50-83) and Ch. 16 Community Ecology Introduction to Community Ecology M Oct. 30 (p. 356-376) Community Structure: Diversity, Composition, 9 W Nov. 1 Species Interactions Factors Influencing Diversity within Communities: F Nov. 3 Filters, Disturbance, Resource Partitioning Ch. 19 (p. 424-445) Change in Communities: Agents of Change; M Nov. 6 Succession Ch. 17 (p. 377-398) 10 Change in Communities: Succession (cont.), W Nov. 8 Alternative Stable States & Resilience F Nov. 10 Discussion 4 11 Landscape Ecology & Regional & Landscape Patterns Ch. 24 (p. 544-567) M Nov. 13 Biogeography W Nov. 15 Global & Island Biogeography Ch. 18 (p. 399-423) F Nov. 17 ** EXAM 2 ** Ch. 20 (p. 448-469) and Ch. Ecosystem Ecology Intro to Ecosystems - Energy Flow & Productivity M Nov. 20 21 (p. 470-492) 12 Energy Flow (cont.): Food Webs & Trophic W Nov. 22 Interactions F Nov. 24 * * * * * * * * TG BREAK - NO CLASS * * * * * * * * *Additional readings to be assigned (check Moodle) TBA = To be announced (check Moodle) 4

Lecture Schedule (Continued) Week Day Date Unit Topic Readings* & Deadlines 13 14 15 Ch. 22 (p. 494-515) and Nutrient Supply & Biogeochemical Cycling Ch. 25 (p. 568-577) M Nov. 27 W Nov. 29 Nutrient Suppy & Availability - Effects on Community Structure & Dynamics Environmental Issues & Biodiversity & Conservation Biology F Dec. 1 Ecological Solutions Ch. 23 (p. 518-543) Biological Invasions M Dec. 4 Podcast Final Projects Due Habitat Loss & Degradation, Restoration & W Dec. 6 Management F Dec. 8 Discussion 5 M Dec. 11 Global Climate Change - Impacts & Adaptation W Dec. 13 Course Synthesis & Final Thoughts S Dec. 16 ** FINAL EXAM ** Final Exam *Additional readings to be assigned (check Moodle) TBA = To be announced (check Moodle) 5