20110125_scienceecology

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Ecology & the EnvironmentBioEE 1610January 25, 2011

Photos: Dhondt, Goodale, Howarth, Harvell, Kessler, Schindler



BioEE 1610 Co-Instructors

Dr. Bob Howarth

Dr. Sunny Power



Course CoordinatorDr. Liz Balko



TeachingAssistants

Cayelan Carey

Robert Bode

Caitlin Cox

Kirsten Coe, Head TA



Still need to enroll?

Want to be waitlisted?Need to change your section?

See Kirsten after class.

Head TA: Kirsten [email protected]



Lecture Schedule

Five Main sections:I. Climate, environment , organism-environment

interactions (Howarth)II.Population Ecology (Power)III.Species Interactions (Power)IV.Community Ecology (Power, Howarth )

V.Ecosystem and Global Ecology (Howarth)



Lecture Format

• Schedule : Two lectures/week (Tu & Th 1:25-2:15)

• Content : Powerpoint, board, and verbal

• Blackboard : Lecture Powerpoints will be posted– Always by the day after; evening before when possible.

• Clicker questions will start next week.



• You MUST be register to receive credit for in-lecture

participation this semester

• iclicker information available on Blackboard underCourse Information

at: http://atcsupport.cit.cornell.edu/pollsrvc

QUESTIONS? E-mail [email protected]

Register your iclicker ASAP!



Readings• Ecology

Cain, Bowman, Hacker. 1 st

ed. (2008)

• Reading before class willhelp you get more out of lecture.

• Additional readings will bedistributed by Blackboard.



Scale

A 90-100%

B 80-90%

C 70-80%

D 60-70%

F < 60%

These cutoffs may be lowered (scaled) but will not be raised.

Grading



Scale

A 90-100%

B 80-90%

C 70-80%

D 60-70%

F < 60%

• Quiz (in sections, February 17 & 18 ): 5%

• Exam I (7:30 pm, 116 Kennedy, March 8 ): 20%

• Exam II (7:30 pm, 185 Statler, April 21 ): 20%

• Final Exam (details to be announced): 20%

• Attendance and Class Participation (iClickers): 5%

• Section Assignments and Participation: 30%

Grading



Sections• Section meetings are mandatory• 50 minutes , Thurs or Friday• Activities: Field, Simulation, Discussions

– Two simulations from SimuText ($10 fee, total)– If “Field”, dress accordingly.

• Most have assignments– Most due at the start of section

• Assignments and Participation: 30% of grade– Two essays (5% each)

– All other section activities (20% total)



Other Items• Office Hours : see Blackboard• Academic Integrity

– Do not present others’ work as your own. This includes usingsomeone else’s iClicker.

• Disability Accommodation– Contact Student Disability Services (SDS), w/in 1 st three weeks.

• Mental Health– Contact us or others if ever needed.

• Turn off your phone , iPod, etc. when you enter class.• iClickers

– Clicker questions will start next week– Up to you to register your iClicker

• Blackboard– Up to you to enroll yourself in the course Blackboard site



Things that help….

• Active vs. Passive learning• Go to lecture and section!

– Take notes, ask questions

• Utilize office hours!• Start assignments early!• Have someone edit everything you write!• Spend more time in our offices before the exam

asking questions than after the exam complainingabout your score!



BIOG 1061 : The “help” course for BIOG 1610

Classes:Wednesday, 2:30-4:00 PM, G-1 Stimson Hall

or Friday, 1:25-2:55 PM, G-1 Stimson Hall

First Meetings: Wednesday, January 26 , or Friday, January 28

Office Hours:Monday – Friday, 1 to 5 PMSunday – Thursday, 7:30 to 9:00 PM

G-24 Stimson Hall

One hour transcript creditS-U only, Grade based on attendance

(Class and office hours open to all BIOG 1610 students, even if unregistered)

Instructor: Lindsay GoodloeG-24 Stimson Hall

Telephone: 255-0974; E-mail: [email protected]



Who are you? Show of hands….

• Freshman?• Sophomore?• Junior or senior?• Other?



Why are we all here?Course Objectives

For you to gain an understanding of:

1) The major principles underlying the ways organismsinteract with their physical and biological environments,

2) How complex ecological systems function,3) Approaches and tools employed in ecological research,4) Application of ecological concepts to solving environmental

problems and conserving biodiversity.



An example: a Recent Headline

(Credit: NOAA http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20100809_deadzone.html)



Do you know the cause of the “Dead Zone”?

A. Global warming

B. Oil spill from BPDeepwater Horizon well

C. Excess use of fertilizer inthe Midwest

D. Overfishing

E. All of the above

B

Credit: NRCS/USDAC

A

Credit: NOAA

D

Credit: NOAA



Dead Zone

• Agroecology & nutrient use• Stream ecology & nutrient

removals• Landscape ecology, nutrient

flow• Marine ecosystem ecology:

controls on production

Credit: NRCS/USDA

Credit: NASAGoolsby et al. 2000



The Role of Ecology

• Ecology provides tools to understand thenatural world , and multiple human impacts .



Ecology is a Science

• From Greek: “Ecology”– “oikos” = house– “logos” = study

• Short def.: Scientific study of the interactionsbetween organisms and their environment



Ecology is a Science

• From Greek: “Ecology”– “oikos” = house– “logos” = study

• Short def.: Scientific study of the distribution,abundance, and interactions of organisms andtheir physical and biological environment

• As a science, ecology includes:– Hypothesis generation and testing

– Testing: Models, Observations, Experiments



EcologyEnviron-

mentalism

Scientific study of the

interactions of organismsand their environment

Concern for and action toward

protecting the environment

A field of biological scienceMulti-disciplinary: biology, physical,social sciences; political activism



Hierarchical Organization in Ecology

• Population : A group of individuals of a singlespecies in a particular area

• Community : Interacting populations of

different species• Ecosystem : A community of organisms and

their physical environment



Hierarchical Organization in Ecology

Figure from Ricklefs 2001



An Example Question addressed by Ecologists:Why are amphibians in decline?

(note that the reading for today’s lecture, Chapter 1 in text,starts with this question)



Amphibians in decline….Part of the reason is increase in deformities



Field observations showed all deformed frogs were infectedby a parasitic trematode flatworm.

Note snail as intermediate host in life cycle of the flatworm.



Figure 1.4 from Cain et al. text: Parasites Can Cause Amphibian

Deformities The graph shows the relationship between the number of Ribeiroia parasites that tadpoles were exposed to and their rates of survival and deformity.(After Johnson et al. 1999.)



Exposure to pesticides can increase harm to frogs from theparasites, as shown in field and lab experiments (work of Kieseker, 2002, as described in Cain et al. textbook).



Source: Johnson, P. T. J., A. R. Townsend, C. C. Cleveland, P. M. Glibert, R. W. Howarth, V. J. McKenzie, E. Rejmankova, and M. H. Ward.2010. Linking environmental nutrient enrichment and disease emergence in humans and wildlife. Ecological Applications 20: 16-29.

Recent experiments by Pieter Johnson and colleagues – toorecent to be in Cain et al. textbook:

Nutrient pollution has more dramatic effect than pesticides, onharm to frogs from parasites.

Mechanism? Nutrients increase growth of

algae with more algae, more snails.Also, snails healthier, and produce manymore parasites per snail.



Another Example Question:

• Does diversity affect ecosystem processes?

David Tilman



# Plant Species

# Plant Species

ObservationsDoes diversity affect

ecosystem processes?

Native Grassland Survey(Tilman et al. 1996)

Native Grasslands



Does diversity affect ecosystem processes?

• Observation: Plant productivity (cover)increases with greater plant species diversity

• Observation: Nitrogen concentrations in thesoil decrease with greater plant species diversity



Experimental studies:

•Conducted in lab or field

•Provide control•Allow for replication•Link cause and effect•Tradeoff with realism and generality



• Field manipulation of plant diversity in 147 grassland plots(3 m x 3 m each)

• Diversity ranged from 1-24 plant species• Measured plant biomass (productivity) and soil nitrogen

after two years

Cedar Creek LTER Experiment(Tilman et al. 1996)

ExperimentsDoes diversity affect ecosystem processes?



# Plant Species

PlantCover(%)

SoilNitrate(mgkg

-1)

Experimental ResultDoes diversity affect

ecosystem processes?

• Experiment: Plantproductivity (cover)increases with greater plantspecies diversity

• Experiment: Nitrogenconcentrations in the soil

decrease with greater plantspecies diversity



Key Points

• Events in the natural world are interconnected.– People depend on and affect the natural

environment, in multiple ways.

• Ecology is the scientific study of interactionsbetween organisms and their environment.

• Ecologists study the natural world and thehuman-disturbed environment by testing

hypotheses with observations, experiments,models.



Agreement between observations and

experimental results gives us confidencethat biodiversity is indeed linked toecosystem processes (in this case,

nitrogen cycling and nitrogen polluton).



Key Points• Events in the natural world are interconnected.

– People depend on and affect the natural environment, inmultiple ways.

• Ecology is the scientific study of interactions betweenorganisms and their environment.

• Ecologists study the natural world and the human-disturbedenvironment by testing hypotheses with observations,

experiments, models.

• Welcome to Ecology and the Environment!



On Thursday – The Physical Environment

Please read (or at least skim!) Chapter 2of Textbook BEFORE class!



Biology Information FairMonday, January 31st

4:00-6:30PMStimson Hall

Meet Faculty

Eat Pizza

Sign-Up forFreshmen Planning

Meetings

AttendProgram of Study

Info SessionLearn About:Programs of StudyUndergraduate ResearchPre-Med/Pre-Vet RequirementsCareers in BiologyCornell Abroad and CALS ExchangeShoals Marine LabGlobal Health MinorCornell Teacher EducationOrganization for Tropical Studies

School for Field StudiesSchool for International TrainingEco QuestDenmark International StudiesBoston University Abroad Program



Differences Between Track I and Writingin the Majors (track II):

• Meet in discussion section twice/week.

• Read and discuss lots of classic and contemporary primaryliterature…many discussions are student-led.

• Exams are taken pass/fail and you have to pass two of the threeexams

• Written work involves a class blog with a series of short and longentries, plus comments on entries

• Course grade is based primarily on written work and your overallparticipation in class.

• An additional credit (4 instead of 3 in track I)



Why Take WIM?• Overwhelming majority of WIM students report that it was one of the

best learning experiences they had as an undergraduate.

• Small group (~16 students max).

• Make many close friends.

• Close working relationship with enthusiastic and friendly teachingassistant.

• Prelims are extremely low-stress!

• A chance to explore, in-depth, any area of ecology that is of particularinterest to you.

• Learn about important ecological issues in a changing world

• Gain the opportunity to improve your writing skills



Potential Meeting Times:

Tues/Fri 9:05 – 9:55 AMTues/Fri 10:10 – 11:00 AM

Tues/Fri 11:15 - 12:05 AMWed/Fri 9:05 – 9:55 AM

Wed/Fri 10:10 – 11:00 AMWed/Fri 11:15 - 12:05 AM

And possibly others…



How to Apply for WIM:

• Pick up application after class.

• Application due Friday, January 28. Notification on Sunday, January30.

• Sections start next week (all applicants go to regular section thisweek)

• I will stay after class with the syllabus and to answer questions

• Questions? Please email Quinn Thomas (rqt2).

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