Spring 2018  |  GEOG 3431 Section 001: Plant and Animal Geography (69104)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Lecture
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
01/16/2018 - 05/04/2018
Tue, Thu 11:15AM - 12:30PM
UMTC, East Bank
Hubert H Humphrey Center 60
Enrollment Status:
Open (29 of 30 seats filled)
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Introduction to biogeography. Focuses on patterns of plant/animal distributions at different scales over time/space. Evolutionary, ecological, and applied biogeography. Paleobiogeography, vegetation-environment relationships, vegetation dynamics/disturbance ecology, human impact on plants/animals, nature conservation. Discussions, group/individual projects, local field trips.
Class Description:
Why is it that nearly every plant in the desert southwest either bites you or pokes you? What is it that they have to defend against and why? Does it seem strange to you that there is an egg laying marsupial that looks like a cross between a duck and a beaver found only in Australia?Why should we be concerned about a type of carp in the Mississippi River or a small, shelled mussel with stripes in our lakes?How (and why) did a sunflower on the remote island of St. Helena transform into several different species of trees? Does it seem like forest fires today are larger and more severe than they have been in the past? What is killing all the elms in the Twin Cities and how did it get here? Science has identified more that 1.4 million different species, yet this is only a small portion of the estimated five to fifty million species thought to exist. The factors and processes that have led to the enormous diversity of life on the planet are complex and interactive. In this course we will explore these issues in detail by examining concepts of biogeography. That is, the how, where, when, and why of biotic organization. Specific topics to be covered includes 1) Evolutionary change; 2) Biotic interactions; 3) Natural disturbance; 4) Successional change; 4) Species dispersal; and 5) Conservation of biotic diversity.
Grading:
Other Grading Information: Course grading will be based on three exams and 5 short homework assignments throughout the semester.
Exam Format:
Short essay/multiple choice
Class Format:
60% Lecture
15% Film/Video
25% Discussion
Workload:
50 Pages Reading Per Week
15 Pages Writing Per Term
3 Exam(s)
5 Homework Assignment(s)
Other Workload: 1
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/69104/1183
Instructor Supplied Information Last Updated:
12 October 2011

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