Course - Community Ecology and Ecosystems - BI2034
Community Ecology and Ecosystems
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About the course
Course content
The course introduces community ecological theory and analysis methods and ecosystem processes and services. Central themes are patterns in species richness and biodiversity, methods to describe patterns on community level, ecosystem functions, predation and other interspecific interactions, disturbance effects, succession, and food webs. The links between community and ecosystem processes and services will be described with theory and examples. The course gives a background for conservation biology with examples on management in different landscapes and ecosystems. The students work in groups and during a field course they gather data, during exercises they process their data with different mathematical methods and write a group report in the format of a scientific paper. The students must choose between a terrestrial field course with focus on plants, or a freshwater aquatic field course with focus on fish and crustaceans (with a maximum of 12 students on the latter).
Learning outcome
Knowledge
After completing the course the students should:
- Have knowledge about different drivers for community composition.
- Know the basic theories about mechanisms important to species distribution and abundance
- Have a general understanding of the links between community composition and ecosystem functions.
- Be able to understand and interpret methods used to describe patterns in occurrence and distribution of species in natural communities.
Skills
The student can:
- Apply different diversity indices
- Apply relevant statistical methods to understand community ecological patterns
- Explain central theories and discuss important ecological mechanisms that influence ecosystems and community ecological patterns in nature.
General competence
The student can:
- To some extent plan, carry out, analyse and report a scientific project
Learning methods and activities
Learning methods and activities
- Lectures: 30 hours
- Seminars and exercises: 40 hours
- Written and oral presentation of group project and active seminar participation
- 4-days field course during the second week of the semester
Mandatory activities.
- Approved presentation of project work
- Seminar and exercise participation
- Approved field course participation
Compulsory assignments
- Approved fieldcourse
- APPROVED
- APPROVED
Further on evaluation
The course consists of two evaluation parts: a written exam (60%) and project work (40%). Both parts are given individual grades and if both are assessed as passed the grades will be calculated to one final grade.
In case of fail:
- Exam: the written exam can be retaken in both semesters, even the one without teaching.
- Project work: an improved version of the project work can be resubmitted
In case of improving grade:
- Exam: the written exam can be retaken in both semesters, even the one without teaching.
- Project work: must follow the course again and submit a new project work.
Required previous knowledge
The course builds on BI1003 or similar basic courses in ecology and also knowledge of plant and aimal taxonomy is an advantage.
Credit reductions
| Course code | Reduction | From |
|---|---|---|
| MNKBI234 | 7.5 sp | |
| MNKBI230 | 6 sp | |
| BI6003 | 2.5 sp | Autumn 2024 |
Subject areas
- Biodiversity
- Biology
- Botany
- Zoology
- Ecology
Contact information
Course coordinator
Lecturers
Department with academic responsibility
Examination
Examination
School exam
The specified room can be changed and the final location will be ready no later than 3 days before the exam. You can find your room location on Studentweb.