GEOGRAPHY 391 BIOGEOGRAPHY
Tuesday and Thursday 2-3:50
Room: MNB 103
Instructor: Mark M. Van Steeter, Ph.D.
e-mail: vanstem@wou.edu
web page: www.wou.edu/~vanstem
phone: 838-8855 office: HSS 216
Office Hours: M 2-3, T 12-1, W 2-4, R 12-1
Text: Biogeography- An ecological and evolutionary approach. Authors: Cox and Moore.
(book store has 8th ed, you can get a cheap 6th ed on-line if you want)
Course Description
Biogeography is the science that attempts to document and understand spatial patterns of
biodiversity. It is a synthetic discipline, relying heavily on theory and data from ecology,
population biology, evolutionary biology, and the earth sciences. In this class, we will work
to develop a holistic understanding of the forces that drive evolution, speciation, extinction,
and the spatial distribution of organisms. Questions concerning the impact of humans on the
distribution of biodiversity will also be an ongoing theme throughout the class.
I expect students to attend every class, be prepared, and to add to the classroom learning
experience. An important part of learning requires the pursuit of questions and the discussion
of ideas. I expect students to ask questions in class and participate in discussions. There is no
such thing as a "stupid question", and the more questions you ask, the more interesting the
class will be for all of us.
Exams
There will be two exams worth 100 points each. They will be based primarily on the lecture
material, but some questions will come from your readings and student presentations. If you
want to get an "A" in the class, I strongly suggest that you attend all lectures, and take very
detailed notes. The format of exams will be a mixture of fill in the blank, matching, multiple
choice, and short essay. I will not give any make-up exams and all exams will count towards
your final grade. If you have a legitimate reason for not being able to make an exam, you
must contact me before the exam is given, or you will receive a zero.
Article Reviews
We will read five articles related to biogeography.
They will be listed under the heading Geog 391 of my web page: www.wou.edu/~vanstem.
Each student is responsible for writing an outline and discussion questions for each article.
You will sign up to be a co-leader of discussion for one of the articles (2-3 leaders per article).
Each outline/discussion questions will be worth 10 points, for a total of 50 points. The
general requirements are outlined below:
*Write an outline of the key points of the article. This must be typed, and usually will
be about two pages.
*Write five discussion questions.
*Lead a group discussion of one article. (there will be a sign up sheet for which one)
Paper and Presentations:
Choose a region and explore its biogeography. Defining the boundaries of this "region"
should be based upon its species composition and physiographic barriers. For example, if you
are interested in rainforests, you could choose the rainforests of the Congo, Amazon Basin,
Indonesia, or Central America. If you like deserts, you could pick the deserts of the Gobi,
Sahara, Mohave, Outback etc. If you like the concepts of "island biogeography", pick an
island of your choice. An important key to motivation and success is to pick a location that
truly interests you
In your research you need to address:
i) historical events/processes responsible for the characteristics of this region
-plate tectonics
-original source areas of species
-migration of species
-evolution of species
ii) unique characteristics of the plants and animals of this region
-characteristics essential to success in this climate and physiography
iii) human induced changes to the region
The most difficult part of the work is to intelligently discuss the evolution of the landscape
and organisms through time. You need to present a clear chronology that explains why this
region has the characteristics of today.
Papers and presentations will be graded on content, clarity, visual impact, and the depth of the
discussion of processes. Any errors in grammar or spelling will significantly lower your
grade. Also, be certain that you can clearly explain everything you have written. If you
include “impressive” techno-jargon that you cannot explain, it will only hurt your grade.
You must write all of the text yourself, and cutting and pasting from web sites will not be
tolerated. This is plagiarism and it will result in a failing grade.
Examples (very simplified):
I. The Great Outback Desert of Australia
-historic isolation of Australia during the period of placental mammal evolution.
- reasons for the arid climate of the region
- plant and animal species and their favorable adaptations to this region
- human induced change to the current ecosystem
II. Rainforests of Papua New Guinea
-tectonic driven formation of the island
-dates of island formation in relation to dates of evolution of plants/animals
-reasons for the wet/humid climate
-dispersal mechanisms important to populating the island
-reasons for the species richness, including issues of competition
-human impacts and effects on the biodiversity of the region
Presentations
Each student will give a 10 minute powerpoint presentation of their paper when it is
completed (week 9), and a less formal 3 minute presentation during week 4. The purpose of
the three minute presentation is to provide a class forum for discussion and clarification
before the final paper and presentation are completed.
i) include maps, photos, illustrations, graphs and tables
ii) text should be “bullet points”, not prose.
Paper
Write a 10+ page paper on your project.
This is a relatively short paper, but I expect the quality to be excellent.
Typical Format:
i) introduction
ii) body with appropriate subheadings
iii) conclusions
iv) bibliography
You need to use at least 8 sources, and at least three of these must be from peer reviewed
journals.
The sources of your information must be frequently and accurately cited in your text.
It is better to cite too often than too little.
If sources of information are not cited within the text, you can’t get better than a “C”.
Don’t use any information from non-credible sources or you will lose points.
Some examples of credible and non-credible sources related to Hawaii.
Credible Sources:
Peer Reviewed journal articles (ex: Science, Nature, Biogeography etc)
US Geologic Survey
NRCS (Natural Resource Conservation Service)
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Org)
NASA
University of Hawaii Biodiversity and Mapping Program
Wikipedia can be a great tool for finding credible sources, but cannot
be cited as a source.
Non-Credible:
Info straight from Wikipedia
Tour Hawaii
Ed’s Page of Hawaii Biogeography
Articles from Newspapers
“Go Hawaii” tourism site
ASK ME if a source is “credible” if you are not 100% sure!
Summary of Project requirements
i) title, rough outline and tentative sources (week 2)
ii) revised outline, sources and three minute presentation (week 4)
iii) paper (week 9)
iv) powerpoint presentation (weeks 9-10)
v) electronic copy of presentation (week 9)
vi) attendance at all presentations
Grading
Every student has the opportunity to get an "A". If you work hard, you will succeed. I
generally grade 100-90 = A, 89-80 = B, 79-70 = C, and 69-60 = D. If this scale is changed, it
will be changed to your advantage.
Exam 1&2 (100pts each)
200 pts
Paper
100 pts
Presentation of Project (10min)
50 pts
Article Reviews (10pts x 5)
50 pts
Outline of Paper and Project Progress Presentation (3min) 20 pts
Worksheets etc. (total points may vary)
20 pts
Attendance during presentations
20 pts
Project title and draft outline
15 pts
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Total
475 pts
Late Assignments lose 10% per day.
Cheating and Plagiarism
Any student suspected of cheating will be referred to the Student Judicial Program. This can
result in being expelled from the University. Don't do it!
Tentative Schedule
Week 1
Class Introduction, Biodiversity
Chapters 1& 2
Week 2
Patterns of Distribution, Communities and Ecosystems
Chapter 3 & 4
Project title, draft outline and sources due Tuesday
Article Review Thursday: Extinction, Substitution and Ecosystem Services
Week 3
The Source of Novelty
Chapter 5
Article Review Thursday: Daphne Major
Week 4
Student Presentations, Outline of paper and all sources due (Tuesday)
Patterns in the Past (Thursday)
Chapter 6
Week 5
Exam 1 (Tuesday)
No class Thursday
Patterns of Life Today (Thursday)
Chapter 7
Week 6
Patterns of Life Today, Interpreting the Past, The Making of Today
Chapters 7, 9,10
Article Review Thursday: George Divoky’s Planet
Week 7
Projecting into the Future
Chapter 11
Article Review Thursday: Overkill Hypothesis
Week 8
Life and Death on Islands
Chapter 13
Article Review Thursday: Island Biogeography
Week 9
Papers Due, Student Presentations begin (Tuesday)
Week 10
Finish student presentations (if needed)
Review of key points from presentations
Lecture (topic to be determined)
Final Exam Thursday March 17th Noon – 1:50