Robert P. Anderson, Ph.D.

Undergraduate Ecology and Evolution course

Spring 2009

Biology 22800, Ecology and Evolution

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Lecture: Wednesday, 6:30–8:10 p.m., Room MR-417A
Laboratory: Section 1GW: Monday, 6:10–10:00 p.m., Rooms MR-822/MR-819
     Section 3EG: Wednesday, 2:00–5:50 p.m., Rooms MR-822/MR-819
 
Prerequisites and corequisites: Bio 206 (Genetics) is a prerequisite to Bio 228, and Math 209 (Calculus and statistics) is a co-requisite; Math 209 and Bio 228 are designed to be taken together.
 
Hours/credits: 4 credits; 6 hours per week ( 2 hours lecture, 4 hours laboratory)
 
Lecture instructor and course coordinator: Dr. Robert P. Anderson, Associate Professor, City College of CUNY
Office: MR-817 Marshak Science Building; Telephone: 212-650-8504
Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 2:00–3:30 p.m. (MR-817 or MR-810)
E-mail: anderson@sci.ccny.cuny.edu (for scheduling issues)
Webpage: http://web.sci.ccny.cuny.edu/~anderson/
 
Laboratory instructor: TBA
 
Textbook, required: Krohne, D.T. 2001, General Ecology, 2nd edition. Brooks/Cole, Pacific Grove, CA. ISBN 0-534-37528-6
 
Laboratory manual: Gallagher, J.C. and O'Connor, T. (editors) 2003. Laboratory Manual for Ecology and Evolution. City College of New York, New York, NY. [Note: we will modify many of the laboratory exercises in the manual and use other handouts as well; see the particular pages assigned for each lab.]

Course objectives (overview and philosophy): Ecology and Evolution examines a spectrum of biological processes, with emphasis on their application to the population and community levels of organization.  The course combines conceptual and quantitative approaches to topics including ecology, ecosystems, biogeography, genetics, evolution, and systematics, as these areas apply to populations and communities of organisms.  The laboratory is a series of exercises and experiments designed to introduce students to data collection and analysis, including interpretation of laboratory and field experiences.  This course will also cover current environmental issues critical to modern society.  Major topics to be covered include: Niche, population growth, species interactions, community structure/succession, global climate and biomes, species richness and diversity, fitness and selection, genetic drift, phylogeny, speciation, and comparative biology.

Attendance Policy: Lectures and laboratories begin promptly, and you are required to be on time.  Attendance in the laboratory, including field trips, is required.  Absence from more than 2 lectures or 2 laboratory periods (including field trips) can result in your being dropped from the course for excessive absences (WU).

 
Grading: Grades will be assigned based on the lecture (50 %) and laboratory (50 %).  If you know that you will miss an exam, contact the instructor as soon as possible so that you can take the exam in advance.  Make-up exams will be allowed only for documented excused absences (e.g., death in the family, extreme sickness).  Plagiarism will dealt with subject to CCNY policies.

The final grade will be calculated as follows:

 

 

Lecture, based on:

 

     3 equally weighted exams  (Exam 1, Exam 2, and Final exam)

45 %

     Quizzes

5 %

Laboratory, based on:

 

     Laboratory exercises and reports

25 %

     Laboratory exams

20 %

     Class participation (in laboratory)

5 %

Grammar, spelling, and composition: Because scientists must be able to express themselves in written prose, students must use proper spelling, grammar (including punctuation), and composition.  Unintelligible sentences and illegible answers will be given no credit.  Paragraphs must be composed of organized, coherent thoughts and include a lead sentence (proper composition).  The instructors are available during office hours or by appointment to answer questions regarding grammar and composition.
 
Lecture: There will be 2 examinations during the semester plus a comprehensive final exam. Each exam will test material covered in lecture, the textbook, and handouts.  Often, lecture will begin with a quiz, generally on the reading for that week’s topic.  The lowest quiz will be dropped.  Lecture also will include group discussions and occasional presentations by students.  Read beforehand and come prepared.

Laboratory: Each student will be required to hand in 9 short exercises (lab reports).  The lowest report will be dropped.  Reports are due promptly at the beginning of the next lab (a 10 minute grace period will be given).  Late reports turned in during the first hour of lab will have a grade reduction of 10 %.  Any report turned in after the first hour of lab will receive an automatic zero.  All lab reports must be typed.  No reports will be accepted by e-mail.  Students who miss lab due to an unexcused absence will receive an automatic zero for that lab report.  While some laboratory data will be collected by team efforts, each student is required to write and submit his or her own reports.
 
There are also 3 field trips, 1 of which is a self-guided tour of selected exhibits at the American Museum of Natural History.  The other 2 are to Inwood Hill Park and to Van Cortlandt Park with the laboratory instructor; because we cannot go on outdoor fieldtrips in the dark, field trips for the evening laboratory section will be during the day on Saturday in lieu of the regular lab period. 

Before each lab, students should read the particular pages of the lab manual and other handouts assigned for that week and make an outline of the concepts and procedures. Each week, one or more students will present an overview of the lab to the class.  Read beforehand and come prepared.

Most labs also will include writing clinics, at the beginning of the lab period.  Students will bring one or more paragraphs that they have written, based on the assignment given the previous week; bring the paragraphs both printed (two copies) and in electronic form (e.g., USB memory stick).  The workshop will include editing and commenting on the writing of other classmates, and presentation of some of the paragraphs to the class.

 
Support Facilities: The Departmental Resource Center is in Room MR-502, and the Computer Facility is in Room MR-819.
 
 
Lecture schedule:

Date

Topic

Readings (Krohne)

 

Wed. 28 Jan.

Levels of organization, niche, and population growth 1 (geometric and exponential growth)

pp. 6–10, 14–15, 221–222, 100–102

Wed. 4 Feb.

Population growth 2 (logistic growth), species interactions (intraspecific competition, interspecific competition, and predation)

pp. 102–103, 182–185, 222–223, 234–237, 244–245, 262–268

Wed. 11 Feb.

Community structure, disturbance, succession

pp. 272–279, 287–292, 324–335, 369–372

Wed. 18 Feb.

EXAM 1

 

Wed. 25 Feb.

Global climate, biomes, biogeochemical cycles

pp. 384–391, 404–419

Wed. 4 Mar.

Species richness and diversity, island biogeography

pp. 296–310

Wed. 11 Mar.

Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, history of evolution

pp. 18–21; handouts (F 1–11)

Wed. 18 Mar.

Fitness, selection, genetic drift

pp. 21–28, handouts (F 225–233)

Wed. 25 Mar.

Topics to be announced (TBA)

TBA

Wed. 1 Apr.

EXAM 2

 

Wed. 22 Apr.

Homology, phylogeny, classification

handouts (F 17–27)

Wed. 29 Apr.

Speciation, macroevolution

handouts (F 83–86, 353–356, 379–381, 392–394)

Wed. 6 May

Comparative biology, historical biogeography

handouts (F 123–128, 429–433)

Wed. 13 May

Topics TBA

TBA

Finals period

(16–22, 26 May)

FINAL EXAM, date TBA

 

 

Laboratory schedule:
Date
(Section 1GW)
Date
(Section 3EG)
Topic
Pages in lab manual
Mon. 26 Jan.
Wed. 28 Jan.
1. Introduction to research in ecology and evolution; introduction to scientific writing
none
Mon. 2 Feb.
Wed. 4 Feb.
2. Writing clinic; Community analysis (map, sampling)
4–13
Mon. 9 Feb.
Wed. 11 Feb.
3. Writing clinic; Population growth
Computer exercise 1 (introduction to Excel)
Computer exercise 2 (Populus: exponential/logistic growth)
 
14–18
72–73
Mon. 23 Feb.
Wed. 18 Feb.
4. Writing clinic; Descriptive statistics
Computer exercise 3 (sampling, confidence intervals)
67–68
68–69
Mon. 2 Mar.
Wed. 25 Feb.
5. Writing clinic; Inferential statistics        (t-test)
70–71
Sat. 7 Mar.
Wed. 4 Mar.
6. Field trip to Inwood Hill Park (on Saturday for Section 1GW; no lab on Mon. 9 Mar.)
31–37
Mon. 16 Mar.
Wed. 11 Mar.
LAB EXAM 1
 
Mon. 23 Mar.
Wed. 18 Mar.
7. Species distributions
Computer exercise 4 (DIVA, modeling distributions)
none
Mon. 30 Mar.
Wed. 25 Mar.
8. Writing clinic; Population genetics
Computer exercise 5 (selection and drift)       
51, 55–56
56
Mon. 6 Apr.
(no class)
 
Wed. 1 Apr.
(no class)
9. AMNH field trip (go on your own sometime this week; no lab on Mon. 6 Apr. or Wed. 1 Apr.)
none
Mon. 20 Apr.
Wed. 22 Apr.
10. Writing clinic; Allometry and regression analysis (bones)
78–79
Mon. 27 April
Wed. 29 Apr.
11. Writing clinic; Systematics
31–34, 38
Sat. 2 May
Wed. 6 May
12. Field trip to Van Cortlandt Park (on Saturday for Section 1GW; no lab on Mon. 4 May)
60–66
Mon. 11 May
Wed. 13 May
LAB FINAL EXAM
 

 

 

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R. P. Anderson
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Last modified: 21 January 2009 (RPA)