Biology 578: Wetland Plant Ecology

Textbook: Mitsch, W.J. and J.G. Gosselink. 1993. Wetlands. 2nd ed. Van Nostrand Reinhold. New York. 722 p.

Goals: To familiarize you with wetland plants and wetland vegetation, major wetland types of the region, their physical and chemical characteristics, their dynamics, and management and regulatory issues of wetlands.

Requirements: Everyone must have a functional e-mail account and access to the World Wide Web. This does not necessarily have to be a university account, although I recommend getting one so you can use printers on campus. You should be prepared for outdoor lab work involving getting wet, muddy, and bug-bitten. See details below.

Lecture Activities: There will be three in-class exams worth 100 points each. Each exam will consist of a mixture of multiple choice, definition, and short answer. All three exams will count toward your final grade; no exams will be dropped. The final exam will NOT be comprehensive. You will also give a group presentation worth 40 points. There will be three on-line quizzes, one prior to each exam. Each quiz will be worth 20 points. Finally, I will take attendance on 10 random days. Each time you are present, you will receive 1 point. Total possible points in lecture will thus be 410 points.

Lab Activities:

Lab activities will be worth 10 points each. The lowest lab score will be dropped, giving a total of 90 points. There will be no make-up labs.

Field Trips:

Note where each lab will be. "In lab" means inside the classroom. "On-campus" means outdoors but within walking distance of the Science Building. Other locations will involve riding in a van to outdoor locations. As you might expect in this course, field trips involve getting wet, usually to the ankles. See details about outdoor labs! Appropriate preparations for field trips include knee-length rubber boots (or old tennis shoes), long pants, long sleeves, sunscreen, bug repellant, hat, daypack, water, and a snack. In general, prepare for heat, mosquitoes, bees/wasps, fire ants, ticks, chiggers, venomous snakes, cuts/scrapes, and stinging/irritating/scratching/poking plants. If you are subject to allergic reactions to insect bites/stings, it is your responsibility to have the appropriate medical supplies on hand. If you have any disabilities that may prevent you from participating in certain activities, please let me know ahead of time so we can work something out.

Grading:

There will be a total of 500 points possible in this course (410 in lecture and 90 in lab). Both lecture and lab scores will be combined for a course total. Your letter grade will be determined according to the following scale:

Points	Percentage	Letter Grade
450-500	90-100%	A
430-449	86-89.9%	B+
400-429	80-84.9%	B
380-399	76-79.9%	C+
350-379	70-74.9%	C
330-349	66-69.9%	D+
300-329	60-64.9%	D
0-299	0-59.9%	F