WLF 448: Fish & Wildlife Population Ecology

Fall 2007

This page is always under construction: Check it regularly

Datea Topicb, c Required/Recommended Readings
Aug 20 I. Introduction     Mills 2007: 3-16 (Req.)
Aug 24 II. Scientific Investigations  SciMethod.pdf

Knowledge

Types of reasoning

Scientific method

Alternate hypotheses

Major fallacies

Science and planning

Student responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 17-37 (Req.)

Romesburg 1981 (Req.)

Braun 2005: 43-71 (Req.)

Aug 22 III. Introduction to Populations  Intropop.pdf

What is a population?

Hierarchical Aggregations

Hierarchy of Methods

Steps to Delimit a Population

"Unit Stock" Concept

Population Characteristics, Processes, and Environment

Early Population Demographers

Student Responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 199-222, 38-58 (Req.)

Krebs 2001: 116-132,106-114 (Rec.)

Cushing 1981:49-70 (Rec.)

Braun 2005: 418-447 (Rec.)

Sep 5 IV. Estimating Pop. Parameters - I

Estimating abundance

Student responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 59-87 (Req.)

Braun 2005: 72-153 (Rec.)

Cushing 1981:95-141 (Rec.)

Krebs 2001: 612-613 (Rec.)

 

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Expanding lake trout population in Pen d'Oreille and impact on bull trout, kokanee and rainbow fishery

Trumpeter Swan transplantation across S. Idaho

Guest lecture by Chip Corsi, IDFG, Coeur d'Alene

Guest Lecture by Kerry Reese

Sep 12 V. Estimating Pop. Parameters - II

Mortality

         Lectures:  Mortali.pdf

  • Terms
  • Life tables
  • Survivorship and mortality curves
  • Catch curves
  • Banding analysis

Natality

Movements

Student responsibilities

References

Mortality:
Mills 2007: 76-81 (Req.)
Wakeley 1982:49-61
Krebs 2001: 133-156
Braun 2005: 377-418 (Req.)

Natality:
Mills 2007: 81-83 (Req.)
Cushing 1981:142-171

Movements:
Cushing 1981: 21-48

Krebs 2001: 41-56

Sept 24 - 26

Sept. 24


Sept. 26



Dr. Garton attending TWS national conference in Tucson, Arizona

Line transect sampling of birds and mammals: Start of the field exercise

 Sources, sinks, bad moms, naive children and hungry trout: The metapopulation biology of Callibaetis mayflies

Wear field shoes, meet in Lecture Hall Hints

Dr. Chris Caudill

Oct  5 EXAM I                          Review Session Oct 4 in CNR 200 at 2:30-3:30 pm
Sept 21 VI. Population Structure

Sex ratio

       Lectures:  Sexratio.pdf

  • Terms
  • Mammalian and avian patterns
  • Examples: humans, birds, mammals, fish
  • Significance and applications

Age distribution

  • Stable-age distribution
  • Changing age distributions
  • Interpretation of age ratios

Age-specific birth and death rates

  • Nature of birth and death rates
  • Effects on age structure
  • Demography lectures

Student responsibilities

References

Wakeley 1982:108-113
Oct 12

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oct. 15

VII. Evolutionary Aspects      Dr. Chris Caudill

Lecture Notes

Significance

Reproductive strategies (evolutionary)

Case study: clutch size in birds

  • Hypotheses
  • Variations
  • Cody's concept

Life history strategies

  • Cole's analysis
  • Annual vs. perennial
  • Age at first reproduction
  • Summary

Student responsibilities

References

      Metapopulation Genetics

Mills 2007: 176-198 (Req.)

Krebs 2001: 17-29, 355-384, 610-611

Oct 17 VIII. Population Growth - Unlimited  
               Dr. Chris Caudill

Unlimited Growth lectures
Stochastic Growth lectures

Introduction

  • Overview
  • Examples

Exponential growth

  • Rate of population increase
  • Populations with discrete breeding periods
  • Continuously breeding populations
  • Assumptions

Stochastic exponential growth

  • Example: Lemhi River Chinook
  • Predicting future population size
  • Probability of extinction
  • Time to extinction

Life tables and population growth

  • Net reproductive rate
  • Mean length of generation
  • Instantaneous rate of change
  • Stable age distribution

Instantaneous and finite rates

  • Relationship between r and k (lambda)
  • Subdividing instantaneous rates
  • Relationship between S and z

Student responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 91-113, 132-158 (Req.)

Krebs 2001: 157-178

Wakeley 1982:135-140

Braun 2005: 154-184

Oct 17 IX. Population Growth - Limited  Dr. Caudill

Limited Population Growth lectures

Introduction

  • General features
  • Cause or mechanism
  • Examples

Logistic growth equation

Estimating parametes

Assumptions

Application / Utility

Density dependence

  • Evidence of density-dependence in mammals (Fowler's tables).
  • Density dependence in reproductive rates
  • Density dependence in mortality rates
  • Density dependence in rates of spring-to-fall increase
  • Case study: Himalayan Thar

Stochastic logistic growth

Population growth - limited with time lags

Student responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 114-131 (Req.)

Cushing 1981:142-171

Krebs 2001: 305-354

Oct 19 Population Models for Fisheries

Beverton-Holt etc.

Dr. Chris Peery
Oct 22 Sustainable Harvest Mills 2007: 295-303 (Req.)
Oct 24 X. Population Viability Analysis Mills 2007: 248-275 (Req.)

Mills et al. 2005: 691-713

Nov 2 EXAM II (Review Session - 6:45-8:45 pm Nov 1 in CNR 108)
Oct 29 PROPOSAL DUE
Oct 26 XI. Interspecific Competition

Lecture pdf to download

Definitions

Classic experiments

Lotka-Volterra competition model

  • Equations
  • Assumptions
  • Phase-plane analysis
  • Coexistence or exclusion
  • Ayla's (1970) fruit flies

Competitive exclusion principle

Evaluation

Niche

  • Definitions
  • Fundamental vs. realized niche
  • Character displacement
  • Limiting similarity

Does competition structure communities?

  • Evidence
  • Case study: Sierra Nevada chipmunks

Resource competition

  • Monod equation
  • Tillman's (1982) theory
  • Coexistence vs. exclusion
  • Spatial heterogeneity of resources
  • Testing the model

Student responsibilities

References

Competition between white-tail & mule deer

Wakeley 1982:203-231, 253-275

Krebs 2001: 179-205 (Req.)

Nov 9-12

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nov 14-16

XII. Predation      Dr. Caudill

Dr. Caudill's Lectures1  Lectures2

Definitions

Examples

Primary components

Logistic growth of prey

Predator response

  • Functional response
  • Numerical response
  • Combined response

Mathematical models

  • Lotka-Volterra model
  • Tanner's model

Parasitism and disease

Stability of predator-prey interaction

Student responsibilities

References

 

Mills 2007: 159-175 (Req.)

Krebs 2001: 206-289 (Req.)

Nov 19-23 FALL RECESS - NO CLASSES

 

Nov 26 XIII. Population Regulation

Lectures

Introduction

  • Examples
  • Characteristics of fluctuations

General theories

Population cycles

Classic studies

Methods

Student responsibilities

References

Mills 2007: 223-247 (Req.)

Wakeley 1982:141-187, 294-313

Krebs 2001: 280-304 (Req.)

Nov 30 EXAM III (Note: Review Session Nov. 29, CNR 108 at 6:45-8:30 pm)
Dec 3 PROJECT REPORT DUE
Dec 5-7

 

 

 

 

Dec 5

 

XIV. Harvest: The Good and Bad 

Principles

  • Additive vs compensatory mortality
  • Sustainability
  • Harvest strategies for upland birds, large mammals, fish
  • Pest control

World-wide Patterns  Dr. Chris Peery

  • Collapsing fish populations
  • Impacts of climate changes
Mills 2007: 286-307 (Req.)

Braun 2005: 658-690


Ludwig et al. 1993:17-36


Krebs 2001: 305-354

Conover 2002

Dec 7 Additional Topics (time permitting)

Genetic Aspects of Population Dynamics

  • Variability
  • Evolution of demes, populations, and species
  • Population viability

Population energetics

Communities

 

 

 

USDA 1988:B1-26

 

Dec 11 FINAL EXAM (comprehensive): 7:30 - 9:30 a.m. (Lecture Hall)

a Dates of lecture topics/exams are approximate. Depending on class participation and interest, more or less time may be spent on a particular subject. Exam dates may change in accordance with class progress.

b To view or print lecture notes (handouts), click on the main topic heading. The second-level headings are bookmarks to specific information contained within that particular lecture topic. Caution: do not just print out the main-topic pages; also look for links to additional material such as tables, figures, examples, etc.

c Some topics will not be covered in lecture or will be reviewed only briefly. In most cases, information on these topics will be presented in assigned readings, handouts, or laboratory sessions. Furthermore, the lecture notes provided here are not comprehensive, i.e., you must attend lecture and lab to get all the information. You are responsible for information presented in lecture and lab, as well as information from assigned readings, handouts, and class discussions.

 

References For Required Readings:

Braun, Clait, editor. 2005. Techniques for Wildlife Investigations and Management. Sixth ed. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Md. 974pp. (required text)

Conover, D.O. and S.B. Munch. 2002. Sustaining fisheries yields over evolutionary time scales.  Science 297:94-96.(on reserve at library)

Cushing, D. H. 1981. Fisheries biology: a study of population dynamics. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. (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)

Ludwig, D., R. Hilborn, and C. Walters. 1993. Uncertainty, resource exploitation, and conservation: lessons from history. Science 260:17-37. (on reserve at library)

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

Mills, L. S., J. M. Scott, K. M. Strickler, and S. A. Temple. 2005.  Ecology and management of small populations.  p. 691-713 in Braun, C. (ed). 2005. Techniques for Wildlife Investigations and Management. Sixth ed. The Wildlife Society, Bethesda, Md.

Romesburg, H. C. 1981. Wildlife science: gaining reliable knowledge. J. Wildl. Manage. 45:291-313. (on reserve at library)

USDA. 1988. Final supplement to the Environmental Impact Statement for an Amendment to the Pacific Northwest Regional Guide. Vol. 2, Appendices: Spotted Owl Guidelines, p. B1:1-26. (on reserve at library)

Wakeley, J. S., editor. 1982. Wildlife population ecology. Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, Pa. (on reserve at library)


 

Revised: 25 August 2011