COURSE OUTLINE

Unit of Study Coordinator: Dr Charlotte Taylor - Room 313, Heydon-Laurence Building, A08, Science Road. Ph: 9351 5788, email:cetaylor@bio.usyd.edu.au

Workshops:Tuesday 2pm - 5pm in the Seminar Room 459, Education Building, Manning Road. http://db.auth.usyd.edu.au/directories/map/building.stm?ref=D08H15

Field Trips: Usually run for a whole day, but this will be negotiated with the group. We will be back on campus by 5pm.

Unit OVERVIEW

The aim of this unit is to provide a background to ecology for those with little previous experience in biology, and to use these principles in activities designed to further an understanding of ecology and current conservation issues.  You will be exposed to some of the “working” aspects of ecology and cutting edge issues using case studies from Australia and particularly the Sydney region. Meetings and discussions with people working 'in the field' will give you an insight into the way that ecologists think and the way they arrive at answers when considering natural systems.  You will have the opportunity to consider different ways of doing science and ways of dealing with different kinds of data, including qualitative, quantitative, anecdotal and experimental.  Also remember to review the ways in which the topics relate to your previous experiences of ecology (which will vary widely within the group) and bring any thoughts, or information you find relevant, to the discussions.  A key feature for many of you as you move to a postgraduate work environment is that the teacher-driven didactic activities are drastically reduced in favour of independent study and discussion.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this course you should be able to:

• Understand the ecological principles underlying environmental problems
• Critically evaluate the literature on environmental research and problem-solving
• Recognise and record information about problems in the field
• Present information from a range of sources in a form meaningful to colleagues in different fields of environmental management
• Communicate your understanding of ecological issues in written and oral presentations

Lectures

There will be a series of lectures during the unit to introduce topics, provide background information and work with any problems or misconceptions students have with the topic. All lecture presentations will be available on the website.   We will use case studies involving relevant problems, many of which we will be observing on field trips, and work with published papers pertinent to the topic.  All students should try to reas relevant papers from the reading list, before the lecture, and be prepared to discuss issues arising from the papers and the lecture materials.  You will get various things from the different papers but the important thing is to consider the way that ecologists frame and approach questions, and the ways they argue about and evaluate the merit of individual papers.

The other purpose of these papers is to give you the opportunity to critically examine biology in detail. In many cases the articles are accompanied by 'comment' articles.  These short papers are summaries by third parties that often place the work in a more apparent context than the original paper suggests.  They are also useful materials for demonstrating the features of a critical review (part of your unit assessment).

Workshop discussions

These will incorporate a number of formats, but usually involving group problem-solving discussions. Groups will be expected to work with data, and information provided, about the problem, formulate solutions and present them to the rest of the class. In some workshops experts in their field will lead discussions on relevant topics.

Fieldtrips

Fieldtrips are a key feature of the unit and an essential component for understanding the biology of environmental problems 'on the ground'. During the fieldtrips you will be introduced to people working in areas of conservation and restoration ecology as well as those carrying out research into ecological issues.

Writing reports and Critical Reviews

The emphasis on written communication in the course mirrors its importance in your future careers in Environmental Management. We will therefore conduct a seminar to provide you with an appreciation of critical review writing, an essential skill for working in a multidisciplinary field such as Environmental Science.

Feedback on your work

ASSESSMENT

We appreciate that each member of the course brings a different experience of ecology, science and work in the academic environment as well as in the workforce. Expectations in terms of successful completion of the course are therefore partly based on each student making a significant improvement from their individual level of expertise and skills documented at the beginning of the course.

A focus of the sessions on report writing and critical reviews will be to show you models of what is expected in your writing and to give you feedback while you are preparing your critical review.  This allows you to make improvements and ask advice before handing in your final review. You will also be offered the opportunity to re-submit your review after it has been marked, so that you can complete suggested revisions.  Report writing will be practised to give the opportunity to research a field problem and present your findings succinctly and for an audience not familiar with the ecological issues.   The critical review will give you the opportunity to research a topic related to your interests, or area of expertise, within the context of an current focus area for environmental biology. 

Since this is an introductory course, a short exam is also part of the assessment.  This allows students to demonstrate their understanding of the basic concepts of ecology and to apply this understanding to current environmental problems similar to those discussed during field trips and workshop sessions.

Details of each assignment will be posted on the website separately.

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Plagiarism will not be accepted under any circumstances, and there will be penalties for any academic dishonesty. This includes insufficient acknowledgment of sources of information ie it is essential that you cite the source of all information.  It is not appropriate to copy totally, or partly, material from other sources.   All students are advised to consult the university policy at http://www.usyd.edu.au/senate/policies/Plagiarism.pdf

READING LIST

1. Anathaswamy A.  2004.  Scene set for next mass extinction  New Scientist (March 27) 181: 10-12
2. Budiansky, S.  1995.  Chaos in Eden  New Scientist 148 : 32-35
3. Clay, K  2003  Parasites lost   Nature  421 585-586
4. Connor, E.D.  and Simberloff, D.  1986.  Competition, scientific method and null models in ecology.  American Scientist.  74: 155-162.
5. Davies  R and Christie J  2001  Rehabilitation of Western Sydney bushland: processes needed for sustained recovery  Ecological Management and Restoration    2(3) : 167-179
6. Dial, R. and Roughgarden, J. 1995.  Experimental removal of insectivores from rainforest canopy: direct and indirect effects.  Ecology  76: 24-37
7. Hobbs R.  2001  Synergisms among habitat fragmentation, livestock grazing and biotic invasions in South West Australia.  Conservation Biology  15(6) : 1522-1529
8. Lawton, J.H.  1995.  Tabanuco trees, trophic manipulations and Tarzan: lizards in a tropical forests canopy. Trends in Ecology and Evolution.  10: 392-393.
9. Ludwig, D.  1994.  Bad ecology leads to bad public policy Trends in Ecology and Evolution  9: 411.
10. May, R.M.  1994.  Graeme Caughley and the emerging science of conservation biology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 9: 368-369.
11. May, R.M. 1989.  An inordinate fondness for ants. Nature 341: 386- 387
12. Mitchell, C.E.   and Power A.G.  2003  Release of invasive plants from fungal and viral pathogens  Nature 421  625-627
13. Purvis A and Hector A  2000  Getting the measure of biodiversity  Nature 405 : 212-219
14. Schwartz MW, Brigham CD, Hoeksema JD et al.  2000.  Linking biodiversity to ecosystem functioning: implications for conservation ecology  Oecologia 122(3) 297-305
15. Stork, N. and Gaston, K.  1990. Counting species one by one.   New Scientist (11 August 1990) 31-35.
16. Torchin ME Lafferty KD, Dobson AP McKenzie VJ and Kuris AM  2003 Introduced species and their missing parasites  Nature 421 628-630
17. Underwood AJ 1986  The analysis of competition in the field  In: Community ecology pattern and process  Ed Kikkawa J and Anderson DJ  pages 240-168
18. Wilson BA, Aberton JG, and Reichl T  2001  Effects of fragmented habitat and fire on distribution and ecology of the swamp antechinus Antechinus minima maritimus   Wildlife Research  28(5) 527-536

SPECIAL RESERVE IN BADHAM LIBRARY - BOOKS

Access the list from the Library Home page. Go to Catalogue then click on Reserve - Course readings and enter the Course code - Envi 5705.

UNIT EVALUATION

We may ask you to complete an evaluation at the end of the unit but would welcome your comments as we proceed. In that way, changes - if needed - can be made which will benefit you, and not just the students who follow behind!