Dr. Collins
Fall 2011
BIOLOGY 315: ECOLOGY
COURSE INFORMATION
INSTRUCTOR:
Dr. Michael Collins
Phone: 843-3557
Office: FJ 106-W
collinsm@rhodes.edu
LECTURE: TTh 9:30 – 10:45 (Kennedy 104)
LAB:
Th 12:30 – 3:30 (FJ 145-W)
Office hours by appointment
Email is the best way to contact me.
TEXTBOOK: Cain, Bowman, and Hacker. 2011. Ecology, 2e. Sinauer Associates, Inc.
ISBN 978-0-87893-083-8
TEXT WEBPAGE: http://www.sinauer.com/ecology2e
CLASS SCHEDULE
Week Day
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Th
T
Date
25 AUG
30 AUG
1 SEP
6 SEP
8 SEP
13 SEP
15 SEP
20 SEP
22 SEP
27 SEP
29 SEP
4 OCT
6 OCT
11 OCT
13 OCT
18 OCT
20 OCT
25 OCT
27 OCT
1 NOV
3 NOV
8 NOV
10 NOV
15 NOV
17 NOV
22 NOV
24 NOV
29 NOV
1 DEC
6 DEC
Topic
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
Reading
Assign.
Introduction: the science of ecology
1
Climate & the physical environment
2
Quiz 1
Biomes, temperature, & water
3-4
Environmental variation: energy
5
Quiz 2
Evolution & ecology
6
Life history
7
Quiz 3
Population distribution & abundance
8
Review
--Population growth
9
EXAM 1
Population dynamics
10
Exam due
Competition
11
Quiz 4
Predation
12
Quiz 5
Dynamics of predation
12
Parasitism
13
Quiz 6
Mutualism & commensalism
14
NO CLASS – FALL BREAK
Quiz 7
The nature of communities
15
Review
--Community change & stability
16
EXAM 2
Biogeography
17
Exam due
Species diversity in communities
18
Quiz 8
Productivity
19
Quiz 9
Review
--Energy flow & food webs
20; p. 272
Conservation biology
22
EXAM 3
Conservation biology
TBA
Exam due
NO CLASS – THANKSGIVING BREAK
Landscape ecology & ecosystem management
23
Quiz 10
Global ecology
24
Review & summary
---
FINAL EXAMINATION: 10 DECEMBER, 5:30 p.m.