WETLANDS
GEOL 590
SPRING 2011
Instructor: Dr. Carol Thompson
Office.- 139D Science, ext 9739
cthompson@tarleton.edu
Text: Wetlands, Mitsch and Gosselink, 3rd ($25+) or 4th ($65+) edition
Additional readings will be on reserve in the library or from the internet
Other books that could be useful and are good references
Wetland Soils – Richardson and Vepraskas
Wetland Indicators - Tiner
Class Site is on Blackboard, readings, pdfs etc
Student Learning Outcomes
Knowledge outcomes
Upon completion of this course students will:
 understand the scientific, social, and legal aspects of wetlands
 understand the principles of wetland delineation
 recognize the different types of freshwater and estuarine wetland systems that exist
 understand options for restoration and management
Skill outcomes
Upon completion of this course students will:
 be able to recognize wetlands in the field
 be able to research complex wetland topics in a timely fashion
 understand the complex relationship between wetland law and wetland science
Value outcomes
Upon completion of this course students will:
 be able to appreciate the value of wetlands and their benefits to society
Grading:
Tests (3)
Paper (1)
Field trips
300 pts
100 pts (U), 150 (G) pts
100 pts
You are responsible for the material in the book so read it. It would be helpful if you have it read before
class. I may not get to cover everything in the book, so you need to be ready to ask about what you don't
understand.
Papers:
Undergraduate – 7 pages, topic to be agreed upon, 75 pts
Graduate – 10 pages and class presentation-20-25 min, topic to be agreed upon, 150 pts. Prior to the
presentation you will list one article or internet source for the class to read that reflects your topic
Possible paper topics:
Paper topics must be chosen by the end of the third week and must be approved. Others are possible
besides what is in the list
 Restoration methods for coastal wetlands with examples
 Treatment wetlands for a single contaminant or group of contaminants (AMD, phosphorus, animal
waste)
 Everglades restoration efforts - plans, progress
 Restoration of mined peatlands with examples
 A comparison of assessment methods
 Prairie pothole restoration methods, successes, problems
 Forested wetland restoration methods, evaluation
 Mangrove wetlands – fx, threats
 Hurricanes and wetlands
 Urban wetlands – problems, successes with examples
 Invasive species (specific) control
 Recovery/disturbance of coastal wetlands following huuricanes
This is a research paper and should be referenced and written accordingly. Use indented paragraphs,
double-spaced, 1 inch margins, 11 pt. font. None of the references can be from the web, unless they are
from a government publication or other complete on-line article. I have the Wetlands journal for the last
14 years or so. I also have a fair number of articles on some topics. Society of Wetland Scientists has a
searchable database on-line of their abstracts. There are over 1800 references in the text.
Referencing should follow standard Wetlands journal style. Refer to their publications.
A useful discussion of content and methodology in research papers can be found at
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~bioslabs/tools/report/reportform.html, and
http://umech.mit.edu/freeman/6.021J/2000/writing.pdf. The paper will be graded on organization,
content, grammar and spelling, and appropriate use of references. The paper is due 3/9. It will be
returned within 2 weeks; the final version is due with the presentations. Turn in the original and final
versions together.
Field Trips
You cannot get an understanding of wetlands by staying inside. We have several field trips to help gain
understanding. You will need waders unless you like to be wet. We will see what is needed at the first
class.
Potential day field trips: (On Saturdays, we can reschedule for other days if all are in agreement, except
Friday)
3 day weekend trip (prob S,S,M) to look at coastal and inland wetlands, East Texas,
Leave Saturday –East Texas, stay at Big Thicket Research Station, Saratoga
Visit coastal and inland wetlands, Return Mon late
Trip reports: You will take notes at each place we visit. Your notes should include all pertinent data –
soils, chemistry, vegetation etc that we look at and any other larger topics we discuss. Your final report
will consist of your field notebook as well as a summarized report on the wetlands we visited. Classify
them, discuss similarities, differences. There will be a separate sheet detailing what is to be included.
Class Topics
This is a list of proposed topics and a speculative order. The 3rd edition is very comprehensive and it
really needs two semesters; the fourth edition has the same material divided into two books. Even with
leaving some material out, we will be moving rapidly.
TOPIC
Introduction, Culture, Definitions,
North American and World wetlands
Classification, Inventory, Wetland Loss
Text 4th ed
Chp 1, 2, 3
Text 3rd ed
Chp 1, 2, 3, 4
Chp 3, 8, 9
Chp 17, 21
Chp 4
Chp 5, other
Chp 5
Chp 6
Chp 6
Corps manual
Chp 7
Chp 5, 10, 11,
other
Chp 6, 16, other
Chp 7
Chp 8. 13
4/27
5/4
Hydrology
Soils
Field Trip – Proctor, Baylor or Dal wetlands
TEST 1
Biological adaptations (Alan Nelson)
Delineation (Paper due)
Spring Break
Wetland Values, Biogeochemistry, CarbonClimate Change
TEST 2
Riparian wetlands, Swamps, Coastal wetlands
Sat-Mon, Coast field trip
Ecosystem theory, Peatlands
Field trip to East Texas bog, managed wetland
Functional assessment, Restoration, Treatment
wetlands (Revised paper due)
Student Presentations
Laws, Protection (Field report due)
5/11
FINAL 6:30-9:00 PM
WEEK
1/19
1/26
2/2
2/9
2/16
2/19
2/23
3/2
3/9
3/16
3/23
3/30
4/6
4/9-11
4/13
4/16
4/20
Chp 14, 15, 9
Chp 12,13
Chp 19, 20
Chp 14, other
Chp 18
Delineation
UNIVERSITY POLICIES
I. Tarleton State University’s Policy on Cheating: Tarleton State University expects its students to maintain high
standards of personal and scholarly conduct. Students guilty of academic dishonesty, cheating, or plagiarism in
academic work shall be subject to disciplinary action. Refer to the Student Handbook for detailed information
regarding this subject.
II. Services for Students with Disabilities: If you are a student with a documented disability desiring to request
accommodations for this course, please contact Trina Geye at geye@tarleton.edu or 254.968.9400.Visit
www.tarleton.edu/~sds or view page 78 in the catalog for additional information.
III. Attendance Policy: Unexcused absences after the third time may be cause for reduction of the grade. Students
are expected to regularly attend all classes in which they are enrolled. Students are responsible for their attendance
and consulting with the instructor regarding class attendance. Please refer to the current University Catalog for
additional information regarding class attendance.
IV. Grading Policy: Please refer to the current University Catalog for additional information regarding grading and
course withdrawal policies. For this course, your grade will be determined as described previously.