FORESTS: An Introduction to Ecology and
Evolution
Bio/Env
2109, 4 credits, Fall 2017
Instructor: Kerry Woods (kwoods@bennington.edu; 440-4465; office hours 10-12, 2-4 Tues, 2-4 Wed)
Meeting
times: 12:10-2:00 Mon, Wed (Dickinson 148); 2:10-6:00 pm
Thurs (LAB, Dickinson 146-7)
LINKS to ASSIGNMENTS, NOTES, READINGS
Doing science is not a passive thing or a simple mastery of a body of 'facts'; the essential skill in any science, and the first focus of this class, is formulation and address of questions and hypotheses from your own observations. Expect to do a lot of disciplined, independent observational work, self-guided background research and reading. However, the most effective questions and hypotheses have to be embedded in the large, dynamic body of understanding already in place, so you'll also be doing a lot of reading and discussion of what scientists have already done. Along the way, you'll learn a lot of the practical tools of research in ecology and evolution.
Ecology and evolution are intimately linked disciplines; you can't grapple with ecological questions without evolutionary insight or understand evolution outside its ecological setting. Ecology is a contextual approach to biology; it is the study of organisms in interaction with one another and with the natural environment, and it deals with questions about the distribution, abundance, and diversity of organisms. Evolutionary biology concerns the processes that shape organisms and generate diversity; it is the intellectual discipline which unifies biology.
Prerequisites: This class is open to all students; there are no formal prerequisites. However, we will be working with quantitative theories and tools; if you are comfortable with high school algebra, that should not be a problem; if not, you shouldn’t give up, but should talk with me before undertaking the class. You may also wish to refer, occasionally, to a general biology text for basic biological background (particularly in genetics and cell structure and function) if you find yourself unacquainted with general terminology and concepts.
Class
Meetings
and attendance: We have two meeting periods:
Monday and Wednesday 12:10-2:00,
and Thursday, 2:10-6:00. Both are required. The
latter session will be used
primarily for laboratory and field work, sometimes mixed with
discussion. Thursday
afternoons will often involve field-work; unless I've
specifically told you otherwise, anticipate that we may go out and come
dressed
appropriately for the out-of-doors and
the weather.
ALWAYS
bring a
lab notebook or clipboard that can be conveniently used in the field
(Note that pens aren't very useful if it's damp; bring a pencil).
Some field-trips will be off campus.
TIMELY
ATTENDANCE IN CLASS AND LAB IS NECESSARY
unless
you have a very good excuse (primarily illness). Absence and
lateness disrupt the class, and can affect your evaluation; FREQUENT
ABSENCES MAY LEAD TO FAILURE. When we are working in the
field we cannot
wait for people who are late; BE THERE BEFORE
the
designated starting time. If you MUST
miss
a class or lab, let
me know in advance if at all possible.
If
you miss a class it
is your responsibility to make sure you are 'caught up';
talk to a classmate to find out what you missed, then bring me any
questions. I do not generally assign 'make-up' work.
Books and Materials: I have not required a standard textbook for this class; they can be unduly expensive. However, there are a number of good introductory/general texts; ask me if you'd like to acquire one. There is no general textbook for this class, but I've listed two books you should acquire (or have access to):
1. Some field guide for (north)eastern trees. The book originally assigned is out of print, but I've emailed you about several alternatives. There is also the browser-based identification app from gobotany.newenglandwild.org. You can’t understand the forest without knowing some trees. I strongly recommend that, whatever identification guide you use should have 'identification keys' (i.e., not just a bunch of pictures to flip through). EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE THIS RESOURCE ON HAND. (You might also wish to get a good field-guide for plants other than trees. There are many, but I recommend Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide.)1.
Townsend, Begon,
and Harper 2008. Essentials of Ecology, 3rd edition.
Blackwell.
2. Ricklefs and Relyea, 20??. The Economy of nature, 6th
edition. Freeman.
3. Molles. 2009. Ecology: Concepts and Applications,
5th edition. McGraw-Hill.
There will be other class readings; these will be made available on-line through the Readings link at the top of this page.
FINALLY: YOU WILL NEED A FIELD-NOTEBOOK. Something you can carry easily and write in in the field. The bookstore usually has some 'Rite-in-the-Rain' brand notebooks -- these are water-proof notebooks that real field-geeks like -- or you can order them on-line.
Structure and Readings: We will focus on processes, concepts, and the development of ideas and questions over descriptive detail; the work of science is not memorizing encyclopedias, but devising ways to answer your own questions and challenge your preconceptions. Some readings will be 'background' and not specifically discussed in class (unless you bring questions), but most will be specifically for focused discussion and analysis in class. I'll try to make clear which is which. READ ASSIGNED MATERIAL BEFORE CLASS, AND BRING QUESTIONS. I will expect each of you to have questions or comments, if called on, for all assigned readings.
1) Frequent thought/analysis problems: These will be take-home, and
oriented
towards the application of scientific concepts and methods to
open-ended problems -- BUT, you'll have to understand and use
terminology and concepts to do well with them..
2) Some labs will
involve write-ups of results. Some may take the form of formal
written reports, others will be more like problem sets.
3) Research/management Proposal: Your major assignment, developed
over the whole term, will be a research proposal or a
targeted management plan. You will develop your own research
question, springing from your own observations, over a series of
stages. The project will also involve literature review and several
written products. More on this later.
Evaluation: Your final evaluation will be based on my assessment of written work and on your general participation and engagement in class and lab. For those requesting letter grades, three components of the class will have approximately equal weight in calculation of final grades: the research proposal (including all stages of its development); all other written work (problems, essays, lab write-ups); and general participation in class, lab, and field. I will weigh later work more heavily than earlier work IF your work shows significant improvement over the course of the term.
TENTATIVE
Class
Outline:
This is not a class-by-class schedule so much as a topical sequence
with an approximate time-frame. It will probably change, and
I'll
try to let you know when it does. You should try to stay
abreast
of where we are in the list. Review my posted notes (based on
class slide-shows) to help stay on track.
Appropriate chapters for background
reading
in the Townsend et al. text on reserve are indicated with a “T”
(sometimes a chapter is listed in two places). You can probably
figure out which chapters would make most sense in other texts, but
feel free to ask. We won't "follow" a text in class
-- it is your job
to bring up questions about any material you read in these or other
sources.
OTHER SPECIFICALLY ASSIGNED READINGS
will be
indicated on the website (see link above) for specific dates. These
should be read in advance.
I. Introduction: The complexity of ecological systems; the nature of fact, hypothesis, proof (Week 1) (T1-2)
II. Community perspective, part I: the
problem of diversity: why are
there so many kinds of organisms (and why not more)? Island
biogeography (Week 2-3)
(T9-10)
III. Population
perspective: population dynamics, competition,
and niche.
(Weeks 4) (T3,5,6,9)
IV. Evolutionary perspective, part I: natural selection and adaptation; the generation of diversity (Week 5-6) (T2,8)
V. Ecosystem perspective: forests as carbon -- flows of materials and energy, limits, and regulation (Week 7) (M18-19) (T11)
VI. Community perspective,
part II: Disturbance, succession, spatial patterns,
and regulation of diversity in ecological time and space (Weeks 8-9)
(T9,10 (again))
VII. Community perspective, part III: Deep
time and ecological patterns: agriculture,
glaciers, and
paleoecology (Week 10)
VIII. Evolutionary perspective, part II: Deep time and macro-evolutionary dynamics: speciation and extinction (diversity again) (Week 11)
IX. Synthetic perspective: biodiversity in the Anthropocene: Ecological consequences of a human-dominated landscape (and whether they matter) (Weeks 12-14) (T12-14)
TENTATIVE Lab Schedule: Labs will be a mix of natural history exploration, simulations, and semi-structured research projects. Most labs will begin with my presentation of a general problem or observation and some available and appropriate methodologies, but specific development of research questions and hypotheses, and experimental design, will be group undertakings, and may involve semi-independent work by groups within the class. Some projects will be open-ended, in terms of content, time, and “correct” result. Scheduling of labs, write-ups, and out-of-lab work is approximate: weather and development of projects will almost certainly lead to changes. REMINDER: for one or two off-campus labs ('Field-trips') we'll plan on leaving during 'class' period so as to have longer time in the field.
Week 1 Patterns in species diversity, and some natural history
Week 2 Finding Questions: Research Proposal, Stage 1
Week 3 Field trip: community sampling and land-use history
Week 4 Field trip: more of the same
Week 5 Field trip: habitat to be determined
Week 6 Carbon budgets
Week 7 LONG WEEKEND: no lab
Week 8 Field trip
Week 9 and beyond: To be added, but will include data-analysis, work with computer simulations...
KW
– August 2017