UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA AIKEN
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY AND GEOLOGY
ICHTHYOLOGY
ABIO 598 (4 credit hours)
Spring 2013
Course Policies, Procedures, and Syllabus
Tues and Thurs 12:15-1:30; Lab Tues 3:05-5:45
Meeting Place:
SBDG 107
Instructor: Dr. Virginia Shervette
Email, Phone, and Office Location:
virginias@usca.edu, 803.641.3605, SBDG 219A
Office Hours: by appointment
TEXTBOOK and LAB MATERIALS
Required Text: The Diversity of Fishes 2nd Edition by Helman et al. 2010
Lab manual: TBA in Lab
LAB SUPPLIES: Dissection kit. Surgical gloves are recommended for use with handling preserved specimens. Each
student must provide his/her own eye protection and gloves when working with preserved specimens. Old
clothes in case you get dirty. Tennis shoes or boots for outside work.
COURSE OBJECTIVES and LEARNING OUTCOMES
COURSE DESCRIPTION: An integrated approach to fish biology from a physiological and ecological viewpoint.
Our class will build on a general background of fish diversity and environmental adaptations while discussing
anatomy, physiology, ecology, behavior, and stress. We will also review the fundamentals of fish design and
physiological adaptation to environment that contributes to their remarkable success.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
 Increase your familiarity with evolutionary history and taxonomic diversity of fishes
 Improve your understanding of the basic physiological and behavioral adaptations that fishes use to carry out
their life cycle
 Enhance your skills at collecting and identifying local fish species
 Expose you to some of the issues surrounding the conservation of fish biodiversity in the environment.
 Introduce you to some of the quantitative techniques used in describing fish biology, and reinforce concepts
of experimental design and hypothesis testing
STUDENT COMPETENCY STATEMENTS: By the end of this course the student will have demonstrated the
ability to:
* Discuss biological principles and topics of historical and current interest and importance relating to fishes.
* Describe the biological processes that operate at the multicellular levels to include histological, organismal,
population, community and ecosystem levels of organization as this relates to fishes.
* Apply theoretical concepts in the laboratory by following a written procedure.
METHODS OF PRESENTATION: This course will consist of lectures by the instructors, lecture videos,
classroom discussion, and group and individual laboratory exercises. The instructors will utilize appropriate
modes of visual aids and laboratory equipment.
METHODS OF EVALUATION: Achievement of course objectives will be evaluated by lecture exams, laboratory
reports, notebooks, quizzes and exams, and a final comprehensive exam.
COURSE GRADING and EXAMS
Grades in the course will be determined as follows:
10% - Participation in lecture
10% - Participation in lab
10% - Lab notebooks (due last day of class)
30% - Three lecture exams
20% - Two laboratory exams
10% - Group research project
10% - Quizzes on reading materials in lecture and lab
See the course schedule below for dates of lecture exams, lab exams and presentation.
ATTENDANCE and PARTICIPATION
1. This is a survey course and covers a great deal of material. The text is good and can help explain lecture
material you may not fully understand. I will not cover all of the text in class, but you will understand
lectures better if you read the assigned text sections before you come to class, and you will do better on tests
if you keep up with the reading. In addition, I will provide information in lecture that will supplement your
text. You will be expected to know this additional material for exams, so it is imperative that you attend
lectures to do well in this class.
2. The lab is heavily scheduled and you will be expected to stay for the entire period.
3. You will be expected to have read all laboratory exercises and the accompanying text references before
attending labs.
4. No make-up exams will be given so do not miss any exams.
5. Students are expected to attend lectures and labs. Pop quizzes will be given periodically to encourage
attendance. In addition, part of your final grade will come from class participation. I will post a rubric for
how lecture and lab participation will be assessed. Keep in mind that one of the easiest ways to assign an
“objective” grade for “participation” is to consider how often you come to class…..
6. You are strongly encouraged to make appointments with your instructor if you are having problems in the
course. You may make an appointment or drop in if I am not busy with another student.
7. Upon prior approval, you will be allowed to use an electronic device to record lectures if the recording device
is placed at the front lecture desk. However, the use of any other portable electronic devices, including cell
phones, pagers, MP3 players, iPods, etc., during class or lab is not permitted. If you have any of these
devices in your possession during class, they must be turned off and stowed away for the duration of the class
period. If you are fiddling with phones, facebook, etc., then you are not “participating” in class and that will
be noted.
8. If you have a physical, psychological, and/or learning disability which might affect your performance in this
class, please contact the Office of Disability Services, 134 B&E, (803) 643-6816, as soon as possible. The
Disabilities Services Office will determine appropriate accommodations based on documentation.
HONOR CODE AND CHEATING
HONOR CODE: In our hearts we know that cheating is wrong. It is the responsibility of every student at the
University of South Carolina Aiken to adhere steadfastly to truthfulness and to avoid dishonesty, fraud, or deceit of
any type in connection with any academic program. Any student who violates this Honor Code or who knowingly
assists another to violate this Honor Code shall be subject to discipline.
By signing your name to an assignment, quiz, or test you are acknowledging that you will adhere to The Honor Code
at USCA. This class is designed to benefit you, the student. Please do not allow yourself to succumb to any form
of cheating. Suspicion of cheating will be reported automatically to Academic Integrity. Cheating on an Exam will
result in an F in the course.
A short note about PLAGIARISM (from Dr. Dyer)
Any and all work turned in for credit is assumed to be your work and the product of your brain and your brain alone.
Every word and every sentence is your work. Work can be considered plagiarism even if it is not exact copying. My
advice is “don’t make me look” because when I get suspicious enough to look, I usually find. For your information, it
is plagiarism….
*if you fail to cite a reference after giving a factual statement;
*if you fail to use quotation marks (and I do not allow quoting in science papers);
*if you turn in work with your name on it that someone else has produced;
*if you rephrase someone else’s work or merely change a few words;
*if you have the same order and form of sentences as the source material or someone else’s work;
*if you consistently mis-cite or mis-use cites in a way that suggests intentional avoidance of
detection;
*if you and a lab partner work together and turn in work that is substantially the same.
ALSO,
If a “draft” of a paper has any of the above problems, it is still plagiarism.
If I cannot tell who in a lab group produced a piece of work, no credit will be assigned to anyone in the lab group.
(This does not include “group” reports.)
If you give your work to someone else and they turn it in, I have the option of including you in the plagiarism charge
because you supported it.
If the references given are not accessible to the instructor, no credit will be given. Therefore, if you use obscure or
unusual references, it is your responsibility to turn in a copy with the assignment or make it available to me.
If you pay someone else to write or prepare an assignment for you, that’s another form of academic dishonesty.
Be aware that what was allowed in high school does not necessarily apply at USCA. If there is anything about the
above statements that are not clear, don’t wait until an assignment is due to find out more.
Many students believe that having no more than three consecutive words from an original source will fool the
electronic programs that detect plagiarism. I don’t use those programs; I read the papers that are given in the
reference list and compare them to the student’s work. If I find any of the problems listed above, there will be no first
warning. There is no latitude given because there is no excuse for plagiarism.
Therefore, if I find any work that is too similar to other work, either in the class or out of the class, please understand
that I have no options but to follow the rules as outlined in the USCA Faculty Manual. The student(s) involved will
be summoned to my office, the situation will be explained. There will be no options for “redoing” the work. A zero
will be given to the assignment, and a formal letters will be sent to the student, the student’s department chair, and to
the Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs to document the situation. As with all academic issues, there is
an avenue for appeal (detailed in the USCA Student Handbook), but it is not through me.
Date
15 Jan Tues
Lecture Schedule
Topic
Introduction to Class; The Science of Ichthyology
Chapter
1
17 Jan Thurs
Systematic Procedures
2
22 Jan Tues
Skeleton, skin, and scales
3
24 Jan Thurs
4
5
6
7 Feb Thurs
Soft Anatomy
Read on Own [Oxygen, metabolism, and energetics]
Lecture: Sensory systems
No class – catch up
Read on Own [Homeostasis]
Lecture: Functional Morphology
Early life history
12 Feb Tues
Juveniles, adults, age, and growth
10
14 Feb Thurs
Exam 1
19 Feb Tues
“A History of Fishes”
11
21 Feb Thurs
Chondrichthyes
12
26 Feb Tues
Living Primitive Fishes
13
28 Feb Thurs
Teleosts 1
14
15
16
17
12 Mar Tues
Teleosts 2
Lecture: Zoogeography
Read on Own [Fish genetics]
NO CLASS (Spring Break)
14 Mar Thurs
NO CLASS (Spring Break)
19 Mar Tues
Special habitats and adaptations
21 Mar Thurs
Guest Lecture: Dr. Mike Paller, SNL
26 Mar Tues
Exam 2
28 Mar Thurs
Fishes as Predators
19
2 Apr Tues
Fishes as Prey
20
4 Apr Thurs
Fishes as social animals: reproduction
21
9 Apr Tues
Fishes as social animals: aggression….
22
11 Apr Thurs
Cycles of activity and behavior
23
16 Apr Tues
Individuals, Populations, and assemblages
24
18 Apr Thurs
Communities, ecosystems, etc
25
23 Apr Tues
Conservation of Fishes
26
25 Apr Thurs
Exam 3
29 Jan Tues
31 Jan Thurs
5 Feb Tues
5 Mar Tues
7 Mar Thurs
? May Tues
Research Presentations (during exam period)
7
8
9
18
LABORATORY SCHEDULE
Week
14 Jan
21 Jan
28 Jan
Topic
No physical meeting of lab but must read: 1. Methods for Fish
Biology and 2. Sampling Considerations (on Blackboard)
Quiz on readings
Getting to know fishes inside and out
Read on own 3-5
Fish Research Collections and Fish ID
Read before next week: 6. Electrofishing
Materials
Pdfs on web
Dead stuff
Pdfs on web
Stuff in lab
Pdf on web
4 Feb
Fish Identification: Freshwater Fishes of SC
Dead stuff
11 Feb
Fish Identification: More Freshwater Fishes
More dead stuff
18 Feb
Tentative Trip to Zoo or Electrofishing
Read 10 Quantitative Description of Diet
Alive stuff
25 Feb
Fish ID and Diet Analysis
Dead stuff
4 Mar
Lab Exam 1
Start Reading all of the following: 7. Age Determination; 9.
Growth; 16. Reproduction; 18 Autecology
11 Mar
Spring Break
18 Mar
Dr. Zelmer: Parasites and Fishes
25 Mar
Quantifying Age in Fishes
1 Apr
Quantifying Reproduction in Fishes
8 Apr
Fish Identification: Estuarine Fishes
15 Apr
Fish Identification: More marine stuff
22 Apr
Lab Exam 2
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF READING THE SYLLABUS
In your natural handwriting copy out the following statement in the space provided below:
I have read the ABIO 598 syllabus and understand the policies on lecture, lab, grading,
exams, attendance, quizzes, honor code, and cheating. I have also read and understand the
additional course information. While physically attending this class, I will act in a manner
that is respectful to me, other students, the professor, and guest speakers.
Write out statement below:
Signature: _________________________________
Name printed:_______________________________
Date: ______________________
*You will not receive credit for this course until you have completed and turned in this acknowledgement.