EY505 Foundations of Ecology (Fall 2007)

Alan Knapp, A/Z 210, 491-7010

Dale Lockwood, A/Z 337, 491-0423

dale.lockwood@colostate.edu

Tuesday – Thursday, 1100-1150 AM, E203 Engineering Bldg.

Web Site: http://lamar.colostate.edu/~aknapp/ey505/

Text Box:

Text: None, but two suggested books for your shelf:

Philosophy of Ecology: From Science to Synthesis. D.R. Keller and F.B. Golley, eds., 2000, University of Georgia Press.

What Makes Biology Unique? E. Mayr, 2004, Cambridge University Press.

Goals of the course:

The Graduate Degree Program in Ecology (GDPE) is an interdisciplinary program for students with interests in a wide range of ecological subjects. The Program's stated goal is “to provide advanced training in current ecological methods, theories, concepts, controversies and applications by synthesizing knowledge from a wide variety of traditional disciplinary areas of science”. EY505 is the starting point for meeting this goal. It is one of the few courses that all GDPE students will share in their programs of study, despite their varied backgrounds and academic goals.

Although the course title might imply that EY 505 is a “General Ecology” course at the graduate level, this is not the case. One might also assume that a “Foundations” course might be a “History of Ecology” course – also not the case. I view this course as one that will emphasize students exploring, gaining appreciation for, and ultimately increasing their understanding of the breadth of Ecology. The rest of your academic careers in GDPE can be focused on receiving advanced training in methods, concepts, controversies, etc. for the particular sub-discipline that most interests you (the “depth” of your training). Here is where we will improve our understanding of the context of ecology. This requires some knowledge of where, how and why Ecology came to be, how and why ecologists ask questions today, appreciating what is unique about Ecology, how it compares to other sciences, and where Ecology might be headed in the future.

Along the way, students will develop abilities to both critique and value ecological ideas past and present, and approach the ecological future with an open mind.

Format:

Typically there will be a lecture on Tuesday to introduce a topic or issue in ecology, and a discussion on Thursday that may be general in nature or may focus on critiquing case studies from the literature. Readings and case studies will for the most part be from journal papers (most available from the course website). This basic format will be flexible however with several guests speakers presenting topics and perhaps leading discussions.

Tentative schedule

Week Topic Readings

Aug 21, 23 Introduction, expectations, overview Mayr 1996

Kingsland 2004

Aug. 28, 30 The why and how of ecology

(past and present) Chaffin 1998

Graham & Dayton 2002

Wilkinson 1999

Sept. 04, 06 More history -- using succession to illustrate Clements 1916

philosophical shifts in ecology. Gleason 1939

Simberloff 1980

Sept. 11, 13 How ecology is done: Manipulative experiments Rousch 1995

vs. natural patterns Stohlgren et al 2003

Guest: Tom Stohlgren (9/11) Naeem et al 2000

The Ecological Hierarchy

Sept. 18, 22 Issues in Organismal Ecology – adaptation & Gould & Lewontin 1979

ecophysiology Mayr 1983

Guest: Lisa Angeloni (9/18)

Sept 25, 27 Issues in Population Ecology Murray 1999

Hall 1988

Oct.02, 04 Issues in Community Ecology Hairston et al 1960

Hutchinson 1959

Ricklefs 1987

Oct. 9, 11 The Ecosystem alternative Odum 1969

Lindeman 1942

Cook 1977

Contemporary Ecology

Oct. 16, 18 The role of modeling in ecology Romesburg 1981

Guest: Tom Hobbs (10/18) Hobbs & Hilborn 2006

Oct. 23, 25 Using the past to understand the present Kelly et al 1991

and predict the future Stevenson et al 2005

Guest: Gene Kelly Chadwick et al 2007

Oct 30, Nov 1 Are there laws in ecology? Lawton

Berryman

Lockwood

Scheiner and Willig

Nov. 06, 08 Practicing ecology – advocacy or neutrality? Ecology-Policy Interface

Guest: Tim Seastedt Nov 6 Luken & Seastedt 2004

Seastedt et al in press

Rosenberg 2007

Nov. 13, 15 Opportunities in Ecology May 1999

Guest: Dana Blumenthal (Nov 13) Thompson et al. 2001

Nov. 27, 29 Global Change and Ecology Vitousek et al. 1997

Sax et al. 2007

Dec. 04, 06 Wrap-up Belovsky et al. 2004

Grading and Assignments:

Weekly assignments: 50% – From weeks 3 through 14, discussions of the weekly topic and the readings will be held (usually) on Thursday. To facilitate involvement by all – which is a daunting task for a class this size – each student will email the instructor a minimum of 2 questions/comments for discussion based on the readings. These can be points of interest, confusion, elaboration, or general (not specific) questions, etc. The key is to generate discussion in areas that you (rather than me) have an interest. This email must be received by me (barring server problems) by 8:00 am the morning of the proposed class discussion time!

Additionally, each week I may call on students to provide a brief elaboration on their comments as an introduction to their discussion points. So please be prepared for class!

Discussions: 30% – this class is all about ideas in and about ecology, understanding how and why ecology is done, and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of different ecological approaches, so your participation in the discussions is a key part of your course grade. Participation will be assessed in a number of ways…in-class surveys and activities, random attendance, etc…

Final exam: 20%. The final exam (a short paper) will be based on synthesizing ideas from a selected group of readings assigned during the semester. More details about this as the semester proceeds.