WLF 448: Fish & Wildlife Population Ecology (4 cr)

Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources

University of Idaho, Moscow, ID

Fall 2007

Lecture: M-W-F 8:30-9:20 CNR 10

Labs: Tu 4:30-6:20, Th 3:30-5:20 in  McClure 214A, F 11:30-1:20 in TLC123

Instructors:

Teaching Assistants:

OVERVIEW

WLF 448 provides an introduction to the study of fish and wildlife populations. Students will study the growth and regulation of populations, competition, predation, and methods of estimating population parameters. Our approach will be to study examples of these processes from current and past field studies and then examine the theoretical principles useful in understanding them.  We will use mathematical, statistical, computer, and modeling tools extensively so you will gain great familiarity with the power and potential of these tools.  Skills in the use of these tools will be invaluable wherever your professional career takes you after graduation.  

PURPOSE OF CLASS

1. To instill a basic understanding of the essential principles of population dynamics.

2. To stimulate an interest in doing sound research in your field of interest.

3. To acquaint the student with findings of classic studies, works of current investigators in the field and the literature in which these works are reported.

4. To develop your quantitative skills and mastery of statistical methods, computer software and simulation tools.

TEXTS

Mills, L. Scott.  2007. Conservation of Wildlife Populations: Demography, Genetics, and Management.  Blackwell, Malden, MA.  407 pp. (required text)

Braun, Clait, editor. 2005.  Techniques For Wildlife Investigations and Management.  Sixth ed., rev. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Md. 740pp. (required text)

Cushing, D. H. 1981. Fisheries biology: a study in population dynamics. Univ. Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wis. On reserve at library.

Krebs, C. J. 2001. Ecology: the experimental analysis of distribution and abundance. Fifth ed. HarperCollins College Publishers, New York, NY. On reserve at library.

Wakeley, J. S., editor. 1982. Wildlife population ecology. Pennsylvania State Univ. Press, University Park, Pa. On reserve at library.

ATTENDANCE

Students are responsible for all material discussed in class and the labs and it will be subject for examination. This includes material presented by myself and the T.A., by students during discussion periods, or by guest lecturers.  Each lecture will begin with a short quiz worth 5 pts. that will be collected after 10 minutes.  Each quiz will cover topics presented during previous lectures or based on required readings.  If you are not present at the start of any lectures you will miss the opportunity to gain these points.  The lowest 3 scores on these quizzes will be dropped at the end of the semester so that you are not penalized for required attendance on field trips taken by other classes during lecture periods.  If you must miss a lab period, make arrangements with the TAs to attend another lab period during that week and turn in your lab assignment prior to its due date.

READING MATERIALS

All chapters assigned in the text are subject to examination. Emphasis will be placed on concepts and examples that illustrate the principles.

Outside readings will be assigned periodically and are subject to examination. These will be available on reserve in the library. Do not wait until the last week before an exam to read these as you might not get a chance to read it if you wait too long. Take notes. Try to summarize the major points of each reading to be certain that you understood it.

EXAMS

1. There will be three comprehensive one-hour tests, worth 100 points each. The final will be comprehensive and is worth 200 points.

2. For the most part, I will not lecture out of Mills or the assigned readings but you are responsible for knowing this material as well.

3. You will only be responsible for the math covered in class or lab.

4. Mid-semester grades will be based on your grade received on the first exam and problem sets and quizzes graded to that time. Grades will not necessarily be based on the scale 90+ = A, 80-89 = B, etc., but will be assigned with a curve.

5. Appealing test grades - Students will have up to three school days to request a grade change. Please write a brief note explaining why the question should be regraded, why the answer is correct, etc. I reserve the right to regrade the entire exam.

6. Do not miss a test. Make arrangements ahead of time if it is absolutely essential. Make-up exams will be tough!.

PROJECT (overview)

The purpose of the semester project is to give each student experience in designing, carrying out and reporting a population study. The project may be done individually or by groups of students up to 2 in number. A more detailed description of project requirements, organization, grading, etc. are provided in the project page. The proposal for the project will be worth 50 points and is due 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 5. The final report will be worth 100 points and is due 5:00 p.m. on Monday, December 3. For each day that the proposal or final report is late, 5 points will be deducted from the respective grade up to a maximum of one half the points

LABS

The purpose of the laboratory is to give you experience in the quantitative aspects of population ecology, which are essential both for understanding the dynamics of populations and for managing populations. You will receive weekly assignments worth 20 points each. The lab will also be used for discussion and review sessions.

FIELD EXERCISES AND CLASS PARTICIPATION

From time to time during the semester I will give you the opportunity to participate in some field exercises. Some will be optional and some will be required. I will frequently ask questions during the lectures and occasionally ask you to hand in your answer to them at the next lecture.  This form of class participation will contribute to your final grade in the class in a minor (approx. 25 pts.) but significant manner.

COMPUTER ACCOUNTS

 Each student must set up a Novell-Network account so that you can store your work on the computer system, read any announcements and assignments that we post, search for literature relevant to your project, and communicate with the Teaching Assistants and myself.  If you don't already have an account, you can set one up by visiting the Help Desk in the Administration Building.

COURSE OUTLINE  See http://www. cnr.uidaho.edu/wlf448/lectout.htm

 This lists the tentative schedule for lecture material, examinations, etc.  The outline serves as the entry point for more detailed outlines for each lecture topic.  You should visit this page regularly and print out the detailed topic outlines for your use.

 ANNOUNCEMENTS   See http://www. cnr.uidaho.edu/wlf448/announce.htm

 Consult this announcement page regularly for announcements of important information, helpful suggestions for projects and lab problems, etc.

 COURSE DIRECTORIES/FILES  See K:\…....\Class\Wlf\448

 All of the software and data that we will use in labs is stored on this directory of the shared K: drive that you can access in any lab on campus.  In addition all of the lecture presentations use the Compel program (a precursor to Powerpoint that Microsoft copied) which is available under a directory called \Lectures\Compell.  Simply execute the CompelShow program (Cpl20shw.exe) by double clicking on it and then choose one of the lecture topics (e.g. Scimethd.cpl for the Scientific Method lectures) to watch the slides used in the lecture over again (or the first time if you had to miss a lecture).  If you copy the Lectures directory to your computer and execute the program you can easily print out copies of the slides in a nice form so you can write your own notes on them too.  Just open the full program (Cpl20.exe), select the lecture topic, then choose File, Print and click on handouts and pick the icon showing 8 slides per page.

  

Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources – Policy on Plagiarism

“A fundamental goal of education is to produce students who can evaluate ideas – both analysis and synthesis – and who can produce significant original thoughts.  Plagiarism is simply repeating words or thoughts of other people, without adding anything new.  Therefore, submitting a plagiarized paper – in addition to the wrongful conduct – does not demonstrate the level of understanding and skill that an educated person is reasonably expected to have.” (R. B. Standler. 2000.  Plagiarism in colleges in USA. http://www.rbs2.com/plag.htm).

 “Plagiarism means using another’s work without giving credit.  You must put others’ words in quotation marks and cite your source(s) and must give citations when using others’ ideas, even if those ideas are paraphrased in your own words.” (http://sja.ucdavis.edu/sja/avoid.htm)

 “Plagiarism is a form of theft.  Taking words, phrasing, sentence structure, or any other element of the expression of another person’s ideas, and using them as if they were yours, is like taking from that person a material possession, something he or she worked for and earned.” (J. Cochran, Wake Forest University, http://www.guilford.edu/original/ASC/TWZ/define.html)

 “Note that the intent of a plagiarist is irrelevant.  It is no defense for the plagiarist to say “I forgot.” Or “It is only a rough draft.” Or “I did not know it was plagiarism.” (R. B. Standler. 2000.  Plagiarism in colleges in USA.  www.rbs2.com/plag.htm)

 Plagiarism violates the University of Idaho code of academic conduct.  The departmental policy is consistent with the UI policy, regulation O-2, “Consequences for academic dishonesty may be imposed by the course instructor.  Such consequences may include but cannot exceed a grade of “F” in the course.” 

 Some potentially useful web sites (in addition to those cited above):

http://www.wiu.edu/users/miwrite/wiu/citation.htm  Citing electronic texts

http://webster.commnet.edu/mla/plagiarism.htm  Examples of what is and is not plagiarism

http://www.its.uidaho.edu/english/comp/plagiarism.htm  UI English Department site

http://www.plagiarized.com/index.shtml  Commercial site for detecting plagiarism

http://www.canexus.com/eve/index.shtml  Site for tracking down plagiarism

  Plagiarism is a serious issue.  Plagiarism will not be tolerated.  Even a sentence or two plagiarized in a long document is inexcusable.  If you are uncertain about how to cite sources, or have other questions about potential cases of plagiarism, visit with your course instructor prior to handing in an assignment.

Disability Support Services Available

Disability Support Services Reasonable Accommodations Statement:  Reasonable accommodations are available for students who have a documented disability.  Please notify your instructor(s) during the first week of class regarding accommodation(s) needed for this course. All accommodations must be approved through Disability Support Services located in the Idaho Commons Building, Room 306. . 885-6307 . email at  <dss@uidaho.edu> . website at <www.access.uidaho.edu> or www.students.uidaho.edu/taap/ Students should present a completed and signed Accommodation Form for the current semester from that office when requesting accommodations.