Aquatic Ecology (Bio 53/153)
Fall 2013
B. Taylor
GENERAL COURSE INFORMATION
STAFF
Assistant Professor: Brad Taylor, 332 Life Sciences Center
Office hours: Tuesday 3-5 pm and Friday 2-4 or by appointment
Graduate Teaching
Instructor:
Tyler Pavlowich, 112A Fairchild
Office hours: Wednesday 1-3 pm and by appointment
Laboratory Director: Craig Layne, 121 Life Sciences Center
CLASS AND X-HOUR TIME AND LOCATION
Tuesday and Thursday 10:00-11:50 am in 105 in the Life Sciences Center. The X-hour for this
class is Wednesday 3:00-3:50 pm and WILL BE USED on occasion throughout the term because
we will need to use the 1 h 50 m lecture time for some of the field trips (see below).
LAB TIME
We will arrange a day and time to meet for lab during the first week of classes. Lab has been
scheduled for 2-5 pm on Monday. The lab meets in room of the 104 Life Sciences Center (see
the Schedule for what you will be doing each week). Please arrive ON TIME to lab because we
need your help loading gear into the vans and often have a 10-25 minute drive. We will usually
use the entire lab time, and on a few occasions lab may take longer than anticipated and
incubating samples will need to be processed when we return. I will try to attend nearly all the
labs. But, you should feel comfortable directing questions pertaining to the lab to your graduate
teaching instructor. For lab, bring a raincoat, footwear that is semi waterproof, waders for
stream labs if you own some, drinking water, and warm clothes!
GOALS
The aim of this course is to develop your understanding of the physical, chemical, and biological
properties of freshwater ecosystems (primarily lakes and streams), and to become familiar with
the techniques used in research of freshwater ecosystems. You will learn how concepts, theory,
and methods can be integrated to address basic and applied problems in fresh waters. This
course blends concepts and approaches from chemistry, physics, mathematics and statistics,
ecology, and evolution. You should have some previous exposure to some of these topics. In
the laboratory section considerable emphasis will be given to building your field research skills
and the quantitative aspects of managing, analyzing, writing, and graphing data you collect.
Also, I hope you learn that biology isn’t rocket science; it’s much harder but more fun, especially
the wet sciences!
SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS
Students requiring disability-related accommodations must register with the Student
Accessibility Service office (SAS). Once SAS has authorized accommodations, students must
show the originally signed SAS Accommodations/Consent Form and/or a letter on SAS
letterhead to their professor. As a first step, if students have questions about whether they qualify
to receive accommodations, they should contact the SAS office. All inquiries and discussions
about accommodations will remain confidential.
ATTENDANCE
Illness
If you become ill and cannot make it to class, lab, an exam, etc., please use email to let me know
you have flu-like symptoms. PowerPoints from lecture are on Blackboard (see below). In
addition, for students who become ill, I will make lecture recordings available. For students who
miss an exam due to illness, please alert me as soon as possible by email, and I will find an
alternative time for you to take the exam. If you must miss a lab due to illness, please alert me
right away, again via email, so we can determine how best to handle the missed lab.
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Religious Observances
Some students may wish to take part in religious observances that occur during this academic
term. If you have a religious observance that conflicts with your participation in the course,
please meet with me before the end of the second week of the term to discuss appropriate
accommodations.
NOTE REGARDING USE OF MATERIALS POSTED ON BLACKBOARD
ALL materials on our Blackboard site, including the recorded lectures, may not be posted on
another website, broadcast, or distributed in electronic or print form to anyone else.
Redistributing this material violates fair use, copyright, and privacy rights of the instructors and
your fellow classmates. Thank you for understanding!
TEXTBOOK
I highly recommend Freshwater Ecology by W. Dodds and M. Whiles. This book is neither the
magnum opus of freshwater ecology nor the das capital, but it is readable, current, and
transportable compared to R. Wetzel’s Limnology book. Dodd’s book also covers streams, lakes,
and wetlands. Copies of Limnology by Wetzel, Stream Ecology by J. D. Allan and M.M.
Castillo, and two excellent books on methods: Methods in Stream Ecology and Limnological
Analyses are on 4 hour reserve in Dana Library.
JOURNAL ARTICLES
The required readings for this course are from the primary literature (journal articles). For each
lecture and some of the labs journal articles will be assigned (see Schedule). You can find these
articles in the library, online using Web of Science (type web of science into the library catalog
search box), and on Blackboard. Locating the journals and articles is a good way to get exposed
to the freshwater ecology literature and find information or ideas for your independent projects,
so I encourage you to read other articles that are cited in the required readings. I will be
lecturing briefly on the concepts of the assigned articles and we will discuss them in depth during
portions of class. Please do the readings ahead of time so you can contribute to the discussion.
10% of your grade will be based on your contribution to the class discussion of the papers. Also,
please read the handout on Blackboard titled, A guide to critical thinking and evaluation of
scientific literature.
GOALS OF THE LABORATORY
1. Learn basic limnological field and lab methods.
2. Apply these methods to test hypotheses that you develop.
3. Understand the patterns and relationships between physical, chemical, and biological
properties in aquatic ecosystems.
Please map out well ahead of time when things are due and start early on them. I have tried to
space things out as evenly as possible, but some tight scheduling is inevitable.
The first few labs will be devoted to teaching you general concepts and methods relevant to
aquatic ecosystems. We may use some out of class time to analyze and process some samples,
such as chlorophyll that need to extract for 6-12 h before being analyzed. The remaining weeks
of lab are set aside for you to use toward your independent project(s). However, you will need to
get started on your project before that time.
POSSIBLE FIELD TRIPS
Weekend Field Trip (TBD)
We will use a weekend field trip to learn more about streams and rivers. We will provide
lodging, transport, meals, and scientific entertainment!
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Hanover Wastewater Treatment Facility
Meet Sister Sludge. During a lecture period we will visit the Hanover wastewater treatment
facility for a hands-on tour (bring your gloves!).
Fish Hatchery
I am trying to schedule a visit to a local fish hatchery to learn about the complex and
contentious role of supplementation programs in wildlife management for recreation and for
restoring threatened/endangered species.
COURSEWORK AND GRADING
Exam questions will cover material covered in the lectures, labs, articles, and textbook.
Journal article discussion
Midterm exam (16 Oct)
Final exam (25 Nov. 3 PM)
Four 2-3 page lab write-ups¥
Independent project* (25 Nov.)
10%
20%
20%
20%
30%
¥Data
analysis write-ups involve graphing, statistically analysis, calculations, and interpreting
data we collect in lab. Write-ups should be no more than one or two pages of double-spaced text
plus graphs, analyses, and calculations for each of the three write-ups. The goal of these is to
learn concepts by working with real data from start to finish. Many of the approaches and
techniques are the same ones used by professionals in the field, so you will learn a unique set of
skills that you can take with you beyond this class.
*There is one required paper. You will receive more detailed information about the structure of
the paper later in the course. The paper is based on an independent research project
designed by you and other members of the class (entire class or groups of 2-3 people). The
paper will help you integrate material learned in lectures and labs to analyze, interpret, and
synthesize your own field data of your choice! We will discuss some ideas for projects during
the x-hour of the second week of classes, but you can start thinking now about what question
might be exciting to explore. The length of the paper should be ~15-20 pages double spaced,
including all the text, tables, figures, and 10-15 citations to journal articles or books that you
have read and used as sources. Please read the handout entitled Hints for how to write scientific
papers. Please plan ahead and do not turn papers in late, as you will lose one whole letter grade
for each day it is late. Producing a product like this from a class project would be great for
everyone and an important item to add to your resume – something to aim for in the design and
data collection. In other words, aim for lots of replicates and maybe consider teaming up with
another group to test two hypotheses or combine an observational and experimental approach to
a question. There are no assigned labs during the later lab sections. This time is set aside for
you to work on your independent projects. The graduate teaching instructor and I are available
to help you during this time. Please give us some notice if you plan to work on your project and
would like help so we can plan to be in the building.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
Academic honesty is essential. The following is quoted directly from the Dartmouth College
Student Handbook: "Students who submit work that is not their own or who commit other acts of
academic dishonesty forfeit the opportunity to continue at Dartmouth." The complete text of the
Academic Honor Principle is in the Student Handbook or at
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/~deancoll/documents/handbook/conduct/standards/honor.html). Please
read the Honor Principle carefully; you are responsible for knowing and understanding the Honor
Principle, and adhering to its letter and spirit. Any violations of the Honor Principle in this course
must be referred to the Committee on Standards and can result in your suspension for multiple
terms, or, in the most extreme cases, separation from the College.
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SCHEDULE
Below is an outline of topics that will be covered in class, in the order in which we will cover
them. These topics may take longer than one class to complete. Unless I instruct you otherwise,
assume that we will be getting to the next lecture topic the following class day and please do the
readings ahead of time. Some of the readings may change if a new and exciting one is published
during the quarter, or if you point one out to me.
DAY,
DATE
Tu, 17
Sep.
TOPIC
Lecture: Introduction;
Why study fresh waters?
Th, 19
Sep.
Lecture: Water
movement, light, and heat
in lakes
Week 1
Tu, 24
Sep.
NO LAB
Lecture: Climate effects
on stratification & lake
process
W, 25
Sep.
X-hour Lecture:
Physiography of lakes and
streams
Th, 26
Sep.
Meet in 104
*Week 2
LAB: Lake vertical
zonation
Lecture: Hydrology
Tu, 1
Oct.
W, 2 Oct.
Th, 3
Oct.
*Week 3
X-hour (discuss project
ideas)
Lecture: Nutrient cycling
and eutrophication
Readings: Winder, M. and D. E. Schindler. 2004. Climate change
uncouples trophic interactions in an aquatic ecosystem. Ecology 85:
2100-2106.
Verburg P, Hecky RE, Kling H. 2003. Ecological consequences of a
century of warming in Lake Tanganyika. Science 301: 505-507.
Readings: Kratz T.K., Webster K.E., Bowser C.J., Magnuson J.J., Benson
B.J. 1997. The influence of landscape position on lakes in northern
Wisconsin. Freshwater Biology 37: 209-217.
Vannote RL, Minshall GW, Cummins KW, Sedell JR, Cushing CE. 1980. The river
continuum concept. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 37: 130-137.
Process samples from week 2 lake sampling lab
Readings: Poff, N. L., J. D. Allan, M. B. Bain, J. R. Karr, K. L. Prestegaard,
B. D. Richter, R. E. Sparks, and J. C. Stromberg. 1997. The natural flow
regime. Bioscience 47:769-784.
Lytle, D. A., M. T. Bogan, and D. S. Finn. 2008. Evolution of aquatic insect
behaviours across a gradient of disturbance predictability. Proceedings of the
Royal Society B-Biological Sciences 275:453-462.
Readings: Merz, J. E. and P. B. Moyle. 2006. Salmon, wildlife, and wine:
Marine-derived nutrients in human-dominated ecosystems of central
California. Ecological Applications 16:999-1009.
Elser, J. J., T. Andersen, J. S. Baron, A. K. Bergstrom, M. Jansson, M. Kyle,
K. R. Nydick, L. Steger, and D. O. Hessen. 2009. Shifts in Lake N:P
Stoichiometry and Nutrient Limitation Driven by Atmospheric Nitrogen
Deposition. Science 326:835-837.
Vonlanthen P, Bittner D, Hudson AG, Young KA, Muller R, LundsgaardHansen B, Roy D, Di Piazza S, Largiader CR, Seehausen O. 2012.
Eutrophication causes speciation reversal in whitefish adaptive radiations.
Nature 482: 357-U1500.
LAB: Setup top-down
versus bottom-up
control of algae
experiment in Storrs
Pond
M 7 Oct.
Tu, 8
ASSIGNMENT
Readings: Vorosmarty, C. J., P. B. McIntyre, M. O. Gessner, D. Dudgeon,
A. Prusevich, P. Green, S. Glidden, S. E. Bunn, C. A. Sullivan, C. R.
Liermann, and P. M. Davies. 2010. Global threats to human water security
and river biodiversity. Nature 468:334-334.
Readings:
Seehausen, O., J. J. M. vanAlphen, and F. Witte. 1997. Cichlid fish
diversity threatened by eutrophication that curbs sexual selection. Science 277:18081811.
Kling, G. W. 1987. Seasonal mixing and catastrophic degassing in tropical lakes,
Cameroon, West Africa. Science 237:1022-1024.
Field trip to the
Lake vertical zonation lab write-up due via Blackboard as one WORD
file by 9 pm
Meet in the classroom and then proceed together to the vans parked on the
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W, 9 Oct.
Lecture: Dissolved
oxygen, inorganic carbon,
and pH
Th, 10
Oct.
Lecture: Primary
producers and
productivity
*Week 4
LAB: Sample top-down
versus bottom-up
control of algae
experiment
Lecture: Detritus, fungi,
and bacteria
Tu, 15
Oct.
W, 16
Oct.
Th, 17
Oct.
Lecture: Mid-term exam
*Week 5
LAB: Rapid biological
assessment of stream
water quality
M, 21
Oct.
Tu, 22
Oct.
W, 23
Oct.
Th, 24
Oct.
*Week 6
M, 28
Oct.
Tu, 29
Oct.
Th, 31
Oct.
*Week 7
Lecture: Zooplankton
B. Taylor
north side of the LSC at 10:00.
Readings: Correll D.L. 1999. The Role of Phosphorus in the Eutrophication
of Receiving Waters: A Review. Journal of Environmental Quality 27: 261266.
Readings: Likens, G. E., C. T. Driscoll, and D. C. Buso. 1996. Long-term
effects of acid rain: Response and recovery of a forest ecosystem. Science
272:244-246.
Caraco N, Cole J, Findlay S, Wigand C. 2006. Vascular plants as engineers
of oxygen in aquatic systems. Bioscience 56: 219-225.
Readings: Hutchinson, G. E. 1961. The paradox of the plankton. American
Naturalist 95:137-146.
Kilroy C, Bothwell ML. 2012. Didymosphenia geminata growth rates and
bloom formation in relation to ambient dissolved phosphorus concentration.
Freshwater Biology: 1-13.
Independent Project Proposal DUE by 9 pm
Readings: Wallace, J. B., S. L. Eggert, J. L. Meyer, and J. R. Webster. 1997.
Multiple trophic levels of a forest stream linked to terrestrial litter inputs.
Science 277:102-104.
Pace, M. L., J. J. Cole, S. R. Carpenter, J. F. Kitchell, J. R. Hodgson, M. C.
Van de Bogert, D. L. Bade, E. S. Kritzberg, and D. Bastviken. 2004. Wholelake carbon-13 additions reveal terrestrial support of aquatic food webs.
Nature 427:240-243.
Readings: Hairston, N. G., Jr., W. Lampert, C. E. Caceres, C. L. Holtmeier,
L. J. Weider, U. Gaedke, J. M. Fischer, J. A. Fox, and D. M. Post. 1999.
Rapid evolution revealed by dormant eggs. Nature 401:446. Hairston, N.
G., Jr., L. J. Perry, A. J. Bohonak, M. Q. Fellows, C. M. Kearns, and D. R.
Enstgrom. 1999. Population biology of a failed invasion: Paleolimnology of
Daphnia exilis in upstate New York. Limnology and Oceanography 44:477486.
Top-down vs bottom-up lab write-up due via Blackboard as one WORD
file by 9 pm
Lecture: Species
interactions cont.
Readings: Kohler, S. L. and M. J. Wiley. 1997. Pathogen outbreaks reveal
large-scale effects of competition in stream communities. Ecology 78:21642176. Power, M. E., W. J. Matthews, and A. J. Stewart. 1985. Grazing
minnows, piscivorous bass, and stream algae: dynamics of a strong
interaction. Ecology 66:1448-1456.
LAB: Estimating fish
diversity and abundance
using electrofishing
Bioassessment lab write-up due via Blackboard as one WORD file by 9
pm
LAB: No scheduled lab;
time to work on projects
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Tu, 5
Nov.
Lecture: Detritus, fungi,
and bacteria &
Zooplankton
W, 6
Nov.
X-hour:
Th, 7
Nov.
Lecture: Vertebrates &
Contaminants in aquatic
ecosystems
F, 8 Nov.
Seminar
Week 8
LAB: No scheduled lab;
time to work on projects
M, 11
Nov.
Tu, 12
Nov.
Readings: Wallace, J. B., S. L. Eggert, J. L. Meyer, and J. R. Webster. 1997.
Multiple trophic levels of a forest stream linked to terrestrial litter inputs.
Science 277:102-104.
Pace, M. L., J. J. Cole, S. R. Carpenter, J. F. Kitchell, J. R. Hodgson, M. C.
Van de Bogert, D. L. Bade, E. S. Kritzberg, and D. Bastviken. 2004. Wholelake carbon-13 additions reveal terrestrial support of aquatic food webs.
Nature 427:240-243.
Readings: Hairston, N. G., Jr., W. Lampert, C. E. Caceres, C. L. Holtmeier,
L. J. Weider, U. Gaedke, J. M. Fischer, J. A. Fox, and D. M. Post. 1999.
Rapid evolution revealed by dormant eggs. Nature 401:446. Hairston NG,
Kearns CM, Demma LP, Effler SW. 2005. Species-specific Daphnia
phenotypes: A history of industrial pollution and pelagic ecosystem
response. Ecology 86: 1669-1678.
Readings: Kohler, S. L. and M. J. Wiley. 1997. Pathogen outbreaks reveal
large-scale effects of competition in stream communities. Ecology 78:21642176.
Haag WR, Warren ML. 1999. Mantle displays of freshwater mussels elicit
attacks from fish. Freshwater Biology 42: 35-40.
Strayer DL, Caraco NF, Cole JJ, Findlay S, Pace ML. 1999. Transformation
of freshwater ecosystems by bivalves. BioScience 49: 19-27.
Readings: Crait, J. R. and M. Ben-David. 2007. Effects of river otter
activity on terrestrial plants in trophically altered Yellowstone Lake. Ecology
88:1040-1052.
Anderson, J. T., T. Nuttle, J. S. SaldaÒa Rojas, T. H. Pendergast, and A. S.
Flecker. 2011. Extremely long-distance seed dispersal by an overfished
Amazonian frugivore. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological
Sciences.
Readings: Krümmel, E. M., R. W. Macdonald, L. E. Kimpe, I. GregoryEaves, M. J. Demers, J. P. Smol, B. Finney, and J. M. Blais. 2003. Delivery
of pollutants by spawning salmon. Nature 425:255-256.
TBA
Special limnology seminar 4:00-5:00 in 201 LSC: Dr. Jim Elser, Topic:
TBA but likely a fascinating talk on ecological stoichiometry in lakes!
Fish write-up due via Blackboard as one WORD file by 9 pm
Lecture: Food webs
Th, 14
Nov.
Lecture: Food webs &
species interactions
Tu, 19
Nov.
Lecture: Unusual
freshwater environments
Week 9
LAB: No scheduled lab;
time to work on projects
M, 25
Nov.
B. Taylor
Readings:
Baxter, C. V., K. D. Fausch, M. Murakami, and P. L. Chapman. 2004. Fish
invasion restructures stream and forest food webs by interrupting reciprocal
prey subsidies. Ecology 85:2656-2663.
Wootton JT, Parker MS, Power ME. 1996. Effects of disturbance on river
food webs. Science 273: 1558-1561.
Carpenter SR, et al. 2011. Early Warnings of Regime Shifts: A WholeEcosystem Experiment. Science 332: 1079-1082.
Readings: Ngai, J. T., and D. S. Srivastava. 2006. Predators accelerate
nutrient cycling in a bromeliad ecosystem. Science 314:963.
Independent Project Due via email by 5 pm
Dates marked with an * indicate that you will be going out in the field. Wear clothing
appropriate for outdoors in the fall in New England, such as a rain coat, fleece, hat, gloves, and
bring drinking water. Bring a waterproof field notebook and a pencil to take notes in the field.
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