Forest Ecology

Forestry 305

Spring 2002

Instructor:

Karen Kuers Office: Snowden 204 Phone: x1421 Office Hours: Wed 8-9 am; Thurs. 9:30-11 am; Fri 11-12 other by appt.

Text Books:

Required: Kimmins, J.P. 1997. Forest Ecology. Prentice-Hall Other: *#Barnes, et. al. 1998. Forest Ecology. John Wiley and Sons *Kozlowski, T.T., P.J. Kramer and S.G. Pallardy. 1991. The Physiological Ecology of Woody Plants. Academic Press, Inc. *Oliver, C.D. and B.C. Larson. 1995. Forest Stand Dynamics. John Wiley and Sons. *Perry, David A. 1994. Forest Ecosystems. John Hopkins University Press *#Waring, R.H. and W.H. Schlesenger. 1985. Forest Ecosystmes Concepts and Management. Acedemic Press, Inc. *Waring, R.H. and S.H. Running. 1998. Forest Ecosystmes Analysis at Multiple Scales. Acedemic Press, Inc. * On reserve at the the library. #On the Snowden class readings shelf.

Class Meetings:

Class meets on M,W, and F from 10-10:50 in Snowden Room 211. The laboratory meets Monday 1:30-5:00 either in Snowden Room 211or the Soils/Hydrology lab in Van Ness Hall. While we will try to end lab by 4:30/5:00, there will be occasions when lab measurements may require extending the period and/or returning to the field site later in the week. Please do not schedule early work on Monday evenings.

Grading Policy:

The course grade will be determined as follows: 50% Exams I, II, and III (Wed. Feb 13; Wed. Mar 13; Mon. April 22) 5% Forest Community Presentations (April 29; May 1) 5% Readings in Forest Ecosystem Studies 25% Laboratory Participation, Reports, and Projects 15% Final Exam: 2:00 p.m. Monday, May 6 (Cumulative) (While all tests are cumulative, Exams I-III will focus on new material.)

Readings in Forest Ecosystem Studies:

Students will be assigned several articles on a selected topic related to Forest Ecology. All students will read each article, and certain students will be responsible for presenting to the class an oral overview of the contents and significance of the articles, and will lead the class discussion on the scientific merits of the paper. Students will be provided with a review format before the first set of readings. Discussion leaders will submit a typed copy of their review and discussion outline on the day of the discussion. Articles covered in class will be included on the exams.

Forest Community Presentations:

Students will work in teams of 2. Each team will select one temperate forest system to research and present to the class in electronic format (Power Point). Each 20 minute presentation should include information regarding the location, species composition, and major environmental factors that are controlling productivity, species composition and stand dynamics within the forest community. The team should present the major environmental problem(s) currently impacting the growth and productivity of the forest system (insect, disease, etc) and possible solutions. Each team will submit an annotated, referenced outline, and reference list (Using APA format) of the project in electronic format two class periods before the scheduled presentation. The outlines will be reproduced for the class to serve as a basis for notes and study. Subjects covered in the presentations will be included on the final exam. Project grades will be based upon timely submission of the outline, as well as quality and scientific content of the outline and presentation. A minimum of 5 references is required, 4 of which may not be internet sources.

Field Trip:

There will be a two day field trip to the Jones Ecological Research Center Sun., April 14- Mon. April 15. Each student will be asked to contribute 5 to $10 to cover lodging costs at the Jones Center.

Syllabus:

This is a working document, subject to readjustment as the semester progresses. Additional readings will be announced in class. Optional / Supplemental readings can be found either on the reading shelf on the 2nd floor of Snowden or on reserve in the library. Please return materials to the reading shelf when you are finished so that they will be available for the other students in the class.

Topic	Reference
Forest Ecology ­ The Ecosystem	Kimmins ­ (Ch 3)
Forest Distribution Effects of Climate and Physiography	Kimmins ­ (288-292) Barnes (153-181; 224-234)
Regeneration Biology	Barnes (94-121; 342-352)
Tree Structure and Function (Review)	Barnes (122-148); Kozlowski (1-16)
Genecology	Kimmins (Ch 6); Barnes (63-91)
Light as an Ecological factor	Kimmins (Ch 7); Barnes (182-205)
Temperature as an Ecological Factor	Kimmins (Ch 8); Barnes (206-223)
Exam I ( Wed., Feb. 13)
Soils and Forest Function	Kimmins (Ch 10); Barnes (255-278)
Forested Watersheds	Kimmins (Ch 11)
Population Ecology	Kimmins (Ch 13)
Community Structure and Function	Kimmins (Ch 14)
Forest Diversity	Kimmins (386-393)
Ecological Succession and Forest Stand Dynamics	Kimmins (Ch 15); Oliver (145-170); Barnes (454-457)
Exam II (Wed. March 13)
Effects of Disturbance (Fire, Wind)	Kimmins (Ch 9; Ch 12)
Energy Flow through Forested Systems	Kimmins (Ch 4)
Carbon Dynamics of Trees and Forests	Barnes (486-523); Waring and Schlesenger (7-37) Birdsey and heath (56-70)
Forest Productivity	Waring and Schlesenger (38-70)
Herbivory in Forest Systems	Perry (439-471); Barnes (333-341)
Exam III ( Mon. Apr. 22)
Nutrient Cycling in Forest Systems	Kimmins (71-129); Barnes (550-576); Perry (360-438)
Climate Change and Forests	Pitelka et al (Plant Migration and Climate Change) Kimmins (Ch 19)
Student Presentations Temperate Forest Communities of the World
Final Exam: Mon., May 6, 2:00 pm