ADVANCED ANIMAL BEHAVIOR – ZOOLOGY 507 – SPRING 2005
APPLICATION OF ANIMAL BEHAVIOR IN CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
Monday 4-6, 119 Science II
Instructor:
Dr. Bonnie Bowen
230 Bessey Hall
294-6391
bsbowen@iastate.edu
Office hours: Monday 3-4 pm, feel free to make appointments for other times that fit
your schedule.
Text: There is no text for the course. There are several good books that deal with
behavior and conservation (see list at bottom of page 2). I will talk about them during
the first class and you may wish to purchase one or more of them.
PLAN FOR THE COURSE
For this advanced course in animal behavior, I have four goals. The first is to
enhance your knowledge of the study of animal behavior by exploring the timely topic of
the application of animal behavior to conservation biology. Most of you have taken
Zoology 304, Animal Behavior. This similarity of backgrounds will allow us to build on
the fundamentals you have been exposed to and to explore advanced subjects in
animal behavior together. In Zoology 304 you learned about animal behavior by
listening to lectures by a professor and by reading a textbook. In Zoology 507, I will
present a few lectures, but most of what you learn will be by reading papers in scientific
journals, discussing those papers with classmates (both in the classroom and in
cyberspace using WebCT), by preparing and giving oral presentations, and by listening
to your fellow students’ presentations. Presentations will be based on topics and case
studies that are assigned or that you choose in small groups.
The second and third goals I have for this course are practical ones that will
benefit you. They are to improve your research skills, specifically through the use of
electronic searching techniques, and to improve your skills at giving presentations. We
will begin our adventures with the electronic information age on the first day of class,
Jan 10, when I will give a presentation on resources in the Science II computer lab.
You will be expected to use these resources when researching your topic for
presentation. You will give several short presentations, often in cooperation with
members of a small group. My goal is that these research and presentation skills will
serve you after you leave Zoology 507, and even if you never think about animal
behavior again!
The fourth goal I have is to develop a web site for the course that will provide
links to sites and information related to the topics we explore in the course. For
example, we could post summaries of topics we discuss or annotated bibliographies of
specific topics. So I am counting on YOU to help with this part of the course.
Evaluation: Your grade in the class will be based on several factors:
1. 50%--Two take-home exams (25% each) that cover the principles of behavior and
conservation that we discuss and learn about through readings. Due dates will be
announced at least two weeks before exams are distributed.
2. 20%--Participation in WebCT discussions and class participation during discussions.
3. 20%--Your presentations during class. Each student will be expected to give three
presentations, 5-10 min each, during the semester. These will be explained during
the first class.
4. 10%--Your contributions to the web site.
OVERVIEW OF CLASS SCHEDULE
DATE
TOPIC
Jan 10
Introduction to class;
Electronic resources—Science II computer lab
Jan 17
NO CLASS; KING HOLIDAY
Jan 24 – April 28
See detailed schedule on next page
May 6 (Fri)
FINAL EXAM PERIOD—12:00-2:00 pm
Since many students will be graduating, we will reschedule the
exam or final class meeting.
BOOKS (will be on reserve in library):
Behavioral Ecology and Conservation Biology. 1998. Tim Caro, ed. Oxford University Press,
New York, USA.
QL751 B3425 1998
Behaviour and Conservation. 2000. L. Morris Gosling & William J. Sutherland, eds. Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, UK.
QH75 B45 2000
Behavioral Approaches to Conservation in the Wild. 1997. Janine R. Clemmons & Richard
Buchholz, eds. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
QH76 .B44 1997
Animal Behavior and Wildlife Conservation. 2003. Marco Festa-Bianchet & Marco Apollonio,
eds. Island Press, Washington, USA.
QL751 .A6497 2003
Advanced Animal Behavior
Schedule for Zoology 507-2005----January 10, 2003
Subject to change as needed to accommodate interests of students,
schedules of guest speakers, or time-sensitive topics
DATE
January 10
January 17
January 24
TOPIC
Introduction
Electronic Resources
No class
February 14
Behavior, genetics &
conservation: populations
Behavior, genetics &
conservation: mating and
social systems
Behavior, genetics &
conservation: mating and
social systems
Dispersal and philopatry
February 21
Habitat selection
February 28
Predation risk
March 7
Reserve design
March 14
Spring break
March 21
Aquatic toxicology
March 28
Endocrinology
April 4
Endocrinology
April 11
Parental care
April 18
Captive management and
reintroductions
Conclusions & Wrap-up
January 31
February 7
April 25