ENVS200

Finally a class at waterloo where I can touch grass.

Ecology is the scientific study of the relationships of organisms and their environment.

Study Tips:

Follow the lecture outlines — they highlight what’s important.
Use the weekly learning outcomes to guide your studying.
Focus on key definitions, ideas, and ecological theories — I won’t be asking random facts or numbers. This exam is not designed to trick you.
Review lab presentations carefully — questions will be drawn directly from that material.
You’ve all engaged deeply with the course readings through Perusall. I won’t ask for specific details from the readings, but I will mainly focus on key concepts that were emphasized in both the readings and lectures.
You will not be tested on the specific steps of the Nitrogen or Phosphorus cycles.
Species ID - You will not be given a specimen and asked what it is. But you do need to know key features that are used to ID something so for example plants - leaf arrangement is important. What is opposite vs. alternate arrangement? For birds - what are they key features that allow you to ID a bird and the three groups/types of Lichen we looked at.

Weeks

Week 1: this week’s lecture learning outcomes are as follows:

Interpret ecology as a science that begins with observations of species
Understand the structure and requirements of ENVS200, including readings in Perusall and Vevox polling in lecture.

This week’s lab learning outcomes are as follows:

Understand how the labs in ENVS200 this term will work
Assess the risks of field work in ENVS200
Explore lichens in the lab and in the field as an introduction to field ecology, including identification/taxonomy, close observation, asking questions, and basic sampling

Week 2: This week’s lecture learning outcomes are as follows:

Understand how the distribution of species is determined by conditions and resources
Understand the resources limiting the productivity of plants (i.e., the energy in the biosphere as a whole)
Contrast a species habitat and its niche, as well as the two types of niche
Describe the larger-scale global patterns in species distribution (biomes), which reflect conditions/resources
Apply these concepts to an appreciation of Ontario’s distinctive prairie (and related) habitats

Week 3: This week’s lecture learning outcomes are as follows:

Explain the basic workings of evolution, including the role of variation and the distinction between micro- and macro-evolution
Understand the relationship between ecology and evolution, specifically in terms of adaptations
Understand how bird features represent adaptations (with a focus on beaks and Canada Geese)

This week you’ll be studying adaptation through an investigation of bird beaks, both in the lab and outdoors in the field.

The lab learning outcomes are as follows:

Learn how to identify birds and how to observe them through binoculars
Obtain a better understanding of the diversity of bird beaks and how they represent evolutionary adaptations
Learn and apply the features of good scientific (ecological) questions.

Week 4:

These are the learning outcomes for Monday’s lecture:

Differentiate some of the key elements of ecological change, such as primary/secondary succession and early/late-successional species, as well as the methods ecologists use to study it
Understand the basic ecology of southern Ontario’s deciduous forests, beginning with an understanding of trees
Conceptualize how change has operated – and continues to operate – at various scales within Ontario’s forests

This week is Lab 3 on “Campus Woodland I,” where you’ll be learning about tree identification to enable you to survey trees on campus.

The lab learning outcomes are as follows:

Understand the purpose of the Lab 3 & 4 Campus Woodland Assignment for exploring ecological change in woodlands
Learn how to identify trees and apply this knowledge in the field Learn methods for sampling i) trees in a forest and ii) soil