ECOLOGY COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

BI 1011: Field Ecology Experience

This course is designed to provide hands-on field research experiences. Students will be introduced to quantitative field science methodology, regional natural history, current research issues, and will participate in data collection for ongoing research projects in the Unity area. The ecological concepts that underlie modern questions in population and community ecology will be explored through discussions, readings and speakers. Conducting regionally-based ecological service-learning projects are a major component of this course. 

BI 2004: Population and Community Ecology

This course will provide an overview of modern ecology: the patterns and processes operating in populations and communities. The first part of the course will focus on demographic characteristics of populations and simple models of population growth and natural regulation. The second part of the course will concentrate on discussions of community structure. Topics include competition, predation, species diversity, niches, disturbance succession, island biogeography, and conservation. Students will also learn quantitative methods, field techniques, and conduct an independent ecological research project.

BI 3263: Ecology of Natural Communities

This course will examine themes in the relationship between organisms and the environment. Students may study the natural history, ecology, geology, and plant and animal adaptations in different habitats, or focus on the ecology of a specific taxonomic group. Examples include courses in Desert Ecology, Winter Ecology, Insect Ecology, Alpine Ecology, Tropical Ecology, etc. This course will involve extensive reading and writing activities, and may involve mandatory field trips to the habitat under study. This course may be repeated for credit, provided the topic is not repeated. For each offering, supplementary course descriptions detailing the topics offered by individual instructors will be published in the course schedule.

BI 3464: Ecosystem and Evolutionary Ecology

This course is designed to provide junior and senior students with a broad understanding of the science of both ecosystem and evolutionary ecology. The study of ecosystems integrates information from physics, chemistry and biology to provide the necessary information to understand controls on photosynthesis, decomposition, and nutrient cycling across diverse terrestrial and aquatic landscapes. The topics in evolution include the study of evolutionary theory, mechanisms of evolution, basic models of population genetics, and the study of how selection and other processes operate on phenotypic variation to produce adaptations. The course also discusses approaches used to study the evolution of behavior, including foraging, patch selection, mating systems and sociality. Throughout the semester emphasis is placed on the importance of ecologists in conservation. Topics will include loss of biological diversity, habitat fragmentation, and climate change.