Fundamentals of Ecology
Code
10651
Academic unit
Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia
Department
Departamento de Ciências e Engenharia do Ambiente
Credits
6.0
Teacher in charge
António Manuel Fernandes Rodrigues, Maria Paula Oliveira Sobral
Weekly hours
4
Total hours
76
Teaching language
Português
Objectives
On completion of this unit, the student should be able to:
* understand the main concepts of ecology;
* understand the relation between biotic and abiotic factors;
* understand the growth or extinction of populations.
* know and describe examples that support the main concepts of ecology;
* apply the knowledge acquired to solve the problems of wildlife management, reintroduction of species, over-exploitation of natural resources and pest control.
Prerequisites
Knowledge of General Biology and Statistics is recommended.
Subject matter
1. Introduction. The scope and importance of Ecology. Applied ecology.
2. Physical environment. Solar radiation and climate, temperature, water, elemental nutrients, and soils.
3. Organisms in its environment. Adaptation, tolerance, homeostasis, and feedback systems. Natural selection and ecological adaptation. Decompositon.
4. Population ecology. Properties of populations. Population growth. Life tables. Deterministic and stochastic models. Human population growth. Population fluctuations and cycles. Intraspecific competition. Niche and coexistence of species. Predation. antipredator adaptations. Predator-prey models.
5. Human impacts on populations. population exploitation, forest exploitation, habitat loss and fragmentation. wildlife restoration, pollution, bioinvaders, pest population and control.
6. Evolution and behavioural ecology. Genetic variation and population size. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium model. Evolution by natural selection. Extinction and conservation.
Bibliography
Krebs, C.J. 2013. Ecology. The Experimental Analysis of Distribution and Abundance, 6th edition. HarperCollins College Publishers, New York.
Molles, M.C. 2012. Ecology: Concepts and Applications, 6th ed. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, Boston.
Odum, E.P. e G.W. Barrett. 2005. Fundamentals of Ecology, 5th ed.. Brooks/Cole, Belmont.
Smith, R.L. e T.M. Smith 2001. Ecology and Field Biology, 6th ed. Benjamin Cummings, San Francisco.
Stiling, P. 2002. Ecology. Theories and Applications, 4th edition. Prentice-Hall, New Jersey.
Townsend, C.R. 2008. Ecological Applications: Toward a Sustainable World. Blackwell Publishing, Malden.
Evaluation method
Continuous evaluation.
Lectures (50%) - Evaluation consists of two tests of multiple choice. Average minimum grade is 9.5
Labs (50%) - Evaluation consists of two minitests and one report. Average minimum grade is 9.5
Students are required to attend 2/3 of the lab classes and minimum grade for labs evaluation of 9.5
FINAL MARK: average of tests and lab assignments.