Download Biol 419. Community Ecology - Washington University Department

Syllabus and Course Information
BIOL 419 Community Ecology
Spring 2014
Class meeting times:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Class meeting locations:
Monday: Life Sciences 311
Wednesday: Life Sciences 311 and 310
Friday: Life Sciences 117 – Natural Sciences Learning Center (NSLC) Computer Lab
Instructor:
Dr. Jonathan Myers, [email protected], 314-925-3167, McDonnell 409
Office hours: Wednesday 2:00–3:00 p.m., 4:30–5:30 p.m., and by appointment
Laboratory website: http://biology4.wustl.edu/faculty/myers/
Teaching Assistant:
Dr. Javier Hernandez, [email protected], 314-935-6245, McDonnell 449-450
Office hours: Tuesday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and by appointment
Course Description:
Community ecology is an interdisciplinary field that bridges concepts in biodiversity science,
biogeography, evolution and biological conservation. This course provides an introduction to the
study of pattern and process in ecological communities with an emphasis on theoretical,
statistical and experimental approaches. Topics include spatial and temporal patterns of
biodiversity, community processes (competition, dispersal, disturbance, island biogeography,
predation, mutualism), ecosystem function, and global environmental change. The class format
includes lectures, discussions, and computer labs focused on analysis, modeling and presentation
of ecological data using the statistical program R.
Prerequisites:
Principles of Biology II (BIOL 2970) required, Introduction to Ecology (BIOL 381)
recommended, or permission of instructor.
What will you learn in this course?
1) Fundamental concepts and theories in community ecology and the integrative,
multidisciplinary approaches used to study ecological communities.
2) How to read, evaluate, interpret, and discuss primary literature and reflect on its scientific
impact.
3) Basic quantitative skills for analyzing, modeling, and presenting ecological data using the R
programming language (http://www.r-project.org).
4) How to write, present, and publish an original research paper by reviewing the primary
literature, analyzing data, writing a manuscript, revising a manuscript, and presenting the
research.
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 1
Blackboard course website:
The course website will be on Blackboard (bb.wustl.edu). The website will contain the current
course schedule, assignments, class meeting slides, an online grade book, reading material, and
important course announcements. Unless instructed otherwise, you will upload all assignments to
Blackboard. You should check the course website on a regular basis, and to help stay up-to-date
on the course, we recommend setting the option to receive an email when we post
announcements. You can access help for Blackboard by clicking on “Help” at bb.wustl.edu or by
contacting WU Student Technology Services (http://sts.wustl.edu).
Course schedule:
The course schedule will be posted on Blackboard.
Assessment:
The grade you earn in this course will be based on the following components:
400 points
Research Project (40% of final course grade)
• 50 points
Paper first draft (5%)
• 200 points
Paper final draft (20%)
• 150 points
Presentation (15%)
250 points
Debate and discussion leadership and participation (25%)
• 100 points
Leadership of first paper discussion (10%)
• 100 points
Leadership of second paper discussion (10%)
•
50 points
Semester-long participation in discussion (5%)
150 points
Take-home exam (15%)
100 points
R computer lab assignments – 9 assignments (10%)
100 points
Semester-long in-class participation and attendance (10%)
1000 points Total
The following scale will be used to assign final course grades. If you are taking this course
Credit/No Credit, you must receive a C+ or better to receive credit.
A+
A
A-
97
93-96
90-92
B+
B
B-
87-89%
83-86%
80-82%
C+
C
C-
77-79%
73-76%
70-72%
D+
D
D-
67-69%
63-66%
60-62%
F
0-59%
Research paper and presentation:
The goal of the research paper and presentation is to demonstrate your ability to review primary
literature on a topic of interest to you, perform quantitative analyses using the statistical program
R, and synthesize concepts and results in written and oral formats.
Topics: You will work collaboratively in teams of two on a topic of particular interest to both
team members. The instructors will provide a list of example topics related to general themes
covered in lectures, discussions, and R computer labs. Teams may choose one of these topics or
any other topic they find exciting within the field of community ecology. Topics should 1) focus
on conceptual issues of broad interest to community ecologists (e.g., fundamental patterns in
nature, hypotheses about the ecological processes that might explain these patterns, and how
ecologists have tested among alternative hypotheses) and 2) interest you. If you are conducting
undergraduate or graduate thesis research, we encourage you to choose a topic directly related to
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 2
your research and to view this assignment as an opportunity to help develop a thesis chapter or
manuscript for publication. Graduate students will have the option to work independently.
Data sets: All teams will have the opportunity to use data from the Washington University Tyson
Research Center Plot (TRCP). TRCP is part of the Smithsonian Institution Forest Global Earth
Observatory (ForestGEO), a global network of forest-ecology plots and scientists dedicated to
the study of tropical and temperate forest function and diversity (http://www.forestgeo.si.edu).
The TRCP data set provides unique opportunities to gain experience in comparative ecological
research at the global scale. We will schedule a class field trip to the TRCP to allow you to
experience the project first hand (more information is provided below). Additional information
on the TRCP is available at: http://www.ctfs.si.edu/site/Tyson+Research+Center,+Missouri
Alternatively, teams may choose to use their own data sets, other data sets (e.g., from online
databases or the primary literature), or simulated data sets (i.e., theoretical modeling exercises)
approved by the instructors. Early in the semester, each team will receive instructor feedback on
a short (1 page or less, not including references) project proposal that outlines their topic, goals
for their analyses, and target data set(s).
Grades: Collaboration is essential for productive careers in science. By working together in
teams, you will gain experience in all aspects of collaborative research, including the
development of a project proposal, writing of a research manuscript, revision of a manuscript,
and the development of a co-authored presentation. Because the projects are designed to foster
skills useful for real-world collaborations, team members will receive the same grades on all
components of the project.
Grades will be based on a first draft of a research paper, a final draft that includes revisions
based on comments from the instructors, and an in-class presentation at the end of the semester.
The papers should be 10-12 pages of double-spaced text (not including the title page, figures,
tables, and references), written as a manuscript for publication in the professional journal
Ecology (link to instructions for authors). The abstract and keywords should be included on the
title page. The presentations should be 15 minutes in length, followed by 3-5 minutes questions
and answers, and formatted for an audience at a professional scientific conference (e.g., the
Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society). Team members should contribute equally to the
presentation and will be evaluated on content over showmanship. On the day of your scheduled
presentation, you will be required to 1) upload an electronic copy of your presentation to
Blackboard by the start of class, and 2) bring 2 copies of a presentation handout (4 slides per
page) for the course instructors to use for grading. Assessment will be based on the thoroughness
of the literature review and synthesis, quality of the data analysis, and clarity of the paper and
presentation.
Debate and discussion leadership and participation:
The goal of the discussions is to provide you with the opportunity to develop your skills to
critically read and evaluate primary scientific literature, interpret and synthesize data and
fundamental concepts in community ecology, and understand how these research papers fit
within the broader context of the course.
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 3
Guidelines for leading and participating in discussions: The instructors will provide guidelines
and tips on how to read, evaluate, interpret, and discuss primary literature. Some useful questions
to consider when leading discussions include: 1) what are the fundamental empirical or
theoretical contributions of the researchers?; 2) what ideas or syntheses have helped resolve (or
fuel) controversial topics? 3) How might remaining disagreements, empirical gaps, or theoretical
gaps be resolved through additional experiments, observations, or other methods?
Grades: Each discussion will be co-led by two students and each student will co-lead two
discussions. By leading the discussion, you will have the opportunity to think more deeply about
lecture topics. Grades will be based on leadership of two discussions and semester-long
contributions to all discussions. Participation and leadership will be assessed based on the level
of preparation of the student and the productiveness of the ensuing discussion, including
knowledge of the assigned reading, integration of the assigned reading with lecture material
covered thus far, and clarity, creativity, and logic of the arguments.
Exam:
The goal of the take-home exam is to demonstrate your ability to synthesize fundamental
concepts, observations, and approaches in community ecology. The exam will integrate lecture
material, papers from in the discussion section, and assignments and topics from the R computer
lab. There is no final exam.
Exam re-grading policy: Every attempt will be made to grade fairly, consistently, and
accurately. If you disagree with the way your answer on your individual exam was graded, you
may submit a written request for a re-grade within 72 hours of receipt of your graded exam. We
will examine re-grade requests at the end of the semester if your grade is borderline, at which
point we reserve the right to re-grade the entire exam.
R computer lab assignments:
The goals of the computer lab assignments are to 1) help develop your quantitative skills in the
analysis, modeling, and presentation of ecological data, and 2) provide a “hands-on” tool to help
solidify and integrate concepts from lecture and discussion. The due date for uploading computer
lab assignments to Blackboard will be 11:59 p.m. on the Wednesday following the Friday
computer lab.
Semester-long in-class participation and attendance:
We expect you to attend and actively participate in all class meetings by voicing your opinions
and asking questions. You are responsible for all material covered in class whether or not you
attend. If you anticipate that you must be absent from a class for a legitimate reason, please
contact the instructors before your absence.
Class field trip to the Tyson Research Center Forest Dynamics Plot:
As part of the course, you will have the opportunity to participate in the Tyson Research Center
Plot (TRCP) Project during a class field trip on a Saturday. The goals of the field trip will be to
provide you with 1) a hands-on overview of the methods for collecting data in the field, and 2)
an opportunity to develop ideas for your research paper and presentation based on field
observations. The tentative date for the field trip is March 1 or March 29; we will finalize the
date during the first two weeks of class.
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 4
Assignment due dates*:
*Please note that this table does not include pre-lab assignments or readings for the Wednesday
discussions. The pre-lab assignments and readings will be listed on the course schedule on
Blackboard.
Week
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Day
Fri
Wed
Wed
Wed
Wed
Sun
Wed
Wed
Wed
Date
1/17
1/22
1/29
2/5
2/12
2/9
2/19
2/26
3/5
Time
11:00am
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
11:59pm
Assignments
Wed 3/19
Sun 3/23
R lab #1 – Introduction to R
R lab #2 – Tyson Research Center Plot
R lab #3 – Biodiversity patterns I
R lab #4 – Biodiversity patterns II
Research project proposal
R lab #5 – Biodiversity & ecosystem function
R lab #6 – Null models
R lab #7 – Functional & phylogenetic diversity
SPRING BREAK
11:59pm R lab #8 – Metacommunities & spatial data analysis
11:59pm First draft of research paper
Wed
Wed
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Sun
11:59pm
5:00pm
11:59pm
11:00am
11:00am
11:00am
11:00am
11:59pm
R lab #9 – Graphics
Take-home exam posted on Blackboard
Take-home exam due
Research project presentations (3 groups)
Research project presentations (3 groups)
Research project presentations (3 groups)
Research project presentations (3 groups)
Final draft of research paper
4/2
4/9
4/16
4/18
4/21
4/23
4/25
4/27
Late work:
To be fair to all students and to the instructors who are responsible for grading, no late work
will be accepted after the item is due. You are required to keep copies of all work. We will not
consider technology excuses, including issues with the installation or use of R on your personal
computer. Please make sure to frequently back up your work to avoid losing data.
Reference manager suggestions:
We encourage you to add references to your journal articles, book chapters, and books into a
reference manager such as Endnote (http://endnote.com), Mendeley (http://www.mendeley.com),
or Zotero (http://www.zotero.org). Benefits of using a reference manager include the ability to
organize and search references by multiple keywords, create bibliographies and in-text citations
for research papers, import journal-specific citation formats to quickly change the formatting
style of citations and bibliographies, and collaborate and share literature with others online.
Mendeley is free and is the primary reference software used by Washington University
(http://libguides.wustl.edu/mendeley).
Installing and using R on your personal computer:
We recommend that you install R on your personal computer for use outside of class. R can be
downloaded for free from: http://r-project.org/. You may use your computer or one of the lab
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 5
computers during the R computer labs. For help with installing R, see the video tutorials on
"How to Install R for Mac" and “How to Install R for Windows” on YouTube.
Academic integrity:
The academic integrity policy of Washington University in St. Louis states: “Effective learning,
teaching and research all depend upon the ability of members of the academic community to
trust one another and to trust the integrity of work that is submitted for academic credit or
conducted in the wider arena of scholarly research. Such an atmosphere of mutual trust fosters
the free exchange of ideas and enables all members of the community to achieve their highest
potential. In all academic work, the ideas and contributions of others must be appropriately
acknowledged, and work that is presented as original must be, in fact, original. Faculty, students,
and administrative staff all share the responsibility of ensuring the honesty and fairness of the
intellectual environment at Washington University.”
The complete policy and procedures are available at:
http://studentconduct.wustl.edu/integrity/policy. As a student at Washington University, it is
your responsibility to become familiar with, understand, and abide by the standards outlined in
this policy before performing any academic work. Ignorance of these policies is not a defense in
cases of infringement.
Any person found using unauthorized assistance (including plagiarism, submitting work for more
than one class without obtaining permission from all instructors, copying answers from another
student’s exam, or turning in group work to which you did not contribute) will be forwarded to
the Committee for Student Academic Integrity. Students found guilty by the Committee will be
given a grade of F for the course and be referred to the Dean for further action.
Laptops and cell phones:
You may bring laptops and phones to class but the sound must be muted. You may use your
laptop for class activities such as computer assignments and note taking, but not for unrelated
activities such as email, Facebook, or web browsing, as these activities are very distracting to the
other students and the instructors. You may not use your phone or text message during class.
Resources to help you succeed in this course:
Disability resources:
Students who are seeking disability information or support should contact Disability Resources
(DRC) at 935-5970 and access information at (http://www.cornerstone.wustl.edu/). If you require
special accommodations for exams or other course activities, please contact us as soon as
possible so that we can arrange for accommodations for you for all in-class activities and exams.
Academic resources:
The Natural Sciences Learning Center (NSLC) (http://www.nslc.wustl.edu/) located in the Life
Sciences building (near the greenhouse) has a computer lab and rooms available for study
groups. Cornerstone offers free academic peer mentoring and training in learning skills
(http://www.cornerstone.wustl.edu/).
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 6
Technology:
Computer labs are available in Olin Library, the NSLC, and other locations around campus. R
will be installed on all computers in the NSLC for your use during and outside of labs.
Contacting us:
Please feel free to email, call us, or to stop by office hours. Please allow 48 hours for email
responses and do not wait until the last minute (e.g., after 5:00 p.m. or a weekend) to contact us,
as we may be unavailable to reply. When e-mailing us, please strive to use professional email
etiquette. For example, use clear subject lines, use a salutation to open your email, sign off with
your full name, and avoid using informal phrases or words such as “Hey” or textspeak.
Recommended books for community ecologists:
Brown, James H. 1995. Macroecology. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Chase, Jonathan M. & Mathew A. Liebhold. 2003. Ecological Niches: Linking Classical and
Contemporary Approaches. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Gotelli, Nicholas J. 2008. A Primer of Ecology, 4th Ed. Sinauer Press, Sunderland, MA.
Gotelli, Nicholas J. & Aaron M. Ellison. 2004. A Primer of Ecological Statistics. Sinauer Press,
Sunderland, MA.
Holyoak, Marcel, Mathew A. Leibold & Robert D. Holt. 2005. Metacommunities: Spatial
Dynamics and Ecological Communities. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Hubbell, Stephen. 2001. The Unified Neutral Theory of Biodiversity and Biogeography.
Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Huston, Michael A. 1994. Biological Diversity. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, U.K.
Levin, Simon A., Stephen R. Carpenter, H. Charles J. Godfray, Ann P. Kinzig, Michel Loreau,
Jonathan B. Losos, Brian Walker & David S. Wilcove (eds). 2010. The Princeton
Guide to Ecology. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Losos, Jonathan B. & Robert E. Ricklefs (eds). 2009. The Theory of Island Biogeography
Revisited. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
MacArthur, Robert H. 1984. Geographical Ecology. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Magurran, Anne E. & Brian J. McGill (eds). 2011. Biological Diversity: Frontiers in
Measurement and Assessment. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.
McCune, Bruce & James B. Grace. 2002. Analysis of Ecological Communities. MjM Software
Design, Gleneden Beach, OR.
Mittelbach, Gary G. 2012. Community Ecology. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, MA.
Real, Leslie A. & James H. Brown (eds). 1991. Foundations of Ecology: Classic Papers with
Commentaries. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Ricklefs, Robert E. & Dolph Shluter (eds). 1993. Species Diversity in Ecological Communities.
University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Rosenzweig, Michael L. 1995. Species Diversity in Space and Time. Cambridge University
Press, Cambridge, U.K.
Scheiner, Samuel M. & Jessica Gurevitch. 2001. Design and Analysis of Ecological
Experiments, 2nd Ed. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.
Verhoef, Herman A. & Peter J Morin (eds). 2010. Community Ecology: Processes, Models, and
Applications. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.
Resources for the R programming language:
Please see the “R resources” folder on Blackboard.
Syllabus: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 7
Course schedule: Community Ecology (BIOL 419) – Spring 2014
Please note that the schedule, topics, readings, and pre-class assignments are subject to change.
Week
Day
Date Topic:
1
Mon
Wed
Fri
1/13
1/15
1/17
Lecture: What is community ecology?
Discussion: Simberloff (2004)
R lab: Introduction to R (Install R on your computer before class)
Mon
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
1/20
1/22
1/24
1/27
1/29
1/31
2/3
2/5
2/7
2/10
2/12
2/14
2/17
2/19
2/21
2/24
2/26
2/28
Mon
Wed
Fri
3/3
3/5
3/7
No class – Martin Luther King Holiday
Discussion: Ricklefs (2008); Vellend (2010)
R lab: Introduction to R; Overview of Tyson Research Center Plot
Lecture: Patterns of biodiversity across spatial scales
Discussion: Levin (1992); Gotelli & Chao (2013)
R lab: Biodiversity analyses I
Lecture: Species abundance distributions
Discussion: Hubbell (2001); McGill et al. (2007)
R lab: Biodiversity analyses II
Lecture: Biodiversity & ecosystem function
Discussion: Worm et al. (2006); Tilman et al. (2012)
R lab: Biodiversity, ecosystem function & parametric statistics
Lecture: Origins & maintenance of biodiversity
Discussion: Tilman & Pacala (1993); Costello et al. (2009)
R lab: Null models. Guest speaker: Dr. Sebastián Tello
Lecture: Evolutionary community ecology & community phylogenetics
Discussion: Cavender-Bares et al. (2009); Peay et al. (2012)
R lab: Functional & phylogenetic diversity
Guest speaker: Dr. Marko Spasojevic
Lecture: Metacommunity ecology & neutral theory
Discussion: Clark (2009); Rosindell et al. (2012)
R lab: Spatial data analysis. Guest speaker: Dr. Iván Jiménez
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
3/10–3/14
Mon 3/17
Wed 3/19
Fri
3/21
Mon 3/24
Wed 3/26
Fri
3/28
Mon 3/31
Wed 4/2
Fri
4/4
Mon 4/7
Wed 4/9
Fri
4/11
Mon 4/14
Wed 4/16
Fri
Mon
Wed
Fri
4/18
4/21
4/23
4/25
No class- Spring Break
Lecture: Species interactions – Interspecific competition
Discussion: Connell (1980); Byers (2000)
R lab: Group projects
Lecture: Species interactions – Predation
Discussion: Paine (1966); Condon et al. (2014); Godfray (2014)
R lab: Graphics
Lecture: Species interactions – Food webs & interaction networks
Discussion: Hairston et al. (1960); Murdoch (1966); Jones et al. (1998)
R lab: Group projects
Lecture: Species coexistence in variable environments
Discussion: Adler et al. (2007); Levine & HilleRisLambers (2009)
R lab: Group projects
Lecture: Community ecology in an era of global environmental change
Discussion: Hoegh-Guldberg et al. (2008); Ricciardi & Simberloff
(2009) and Responses; Minteer & Collins (2010)
Project Presentations
Project Presentations
Project Presentations
Project Presentations
Course schedule: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 1
Pre-class
assignments
NY Times Article
R Webinar
Gilbert et al. (2010)
Blog posts
Weiher (2011) Book chapter
Bailey & Gatrell
(1995) - Chapter 1
Mittelbach (2012) Chapter 4
Reading Assignments: Community Ecology (BIOL 419) – Spring 2014
Week 1 - What is community ecology?
Simberloff, D. 2004. Community ecology: is it time to move on? American Naturalist 163:787–799.
Vance, A. 2009. Data analysts are mesmerized by the power of program R. The New York Times.
Week 2 - What is community ecology?
Ricklefs, R. E. 2008. Disintegration of the ecological community. American Naturalist 172:741–750.
Vellend, M. 2010. Conceptual synthesis in community ecology. Quarterly Review of Biology 85:183–
206.
Week 3 - Patterns of biodiversity across spatial scales
Gotelli N. J., and A. Chao. 2013. Measuring and estimating species richness, species diversity, and
biotic similarity from sampling data. Pages 195- 211 in Levin S.A. (editor) Encyclopedia of
Biodiversity, Second edition, Volume 5. Academic Press, Massachusetts.
Levin, S. A. 1992. The problem of pattern and scale in ecology. Ecology 73:1943–1967.
Week 4 - Species abundance distributions
Hubbell, S. P. 2001. The Unified Neutral Theory of Biodiversity and Biogeography. Princeton
University Press, New Jersey. [Read Chapters 2-3, Pages 30-75].
McGill, B. J., R. S. Etienne, J. S. Gray, D. Alonso, M. J. Anderson, H. K. Benecha, M. Dornelas, B.
J. Enquist, J. L. Green, F. L. He, A. H. Hurlbert, A. E. Magurran, P. A. Marquet, B. A.
Maurer, A. Ostling, C. U. Soykan, K. I. Ugland, and E. P. White. 2007. Species abundance
distributions: moving beyond single prediction theories to integration within an ecological
framework. Ecology Letters 10:995–1015.
Week 5 - Biodiversity & ecosystem function
Tilman, D., P. B. Reich, and F. Isbell. 2012. Biodiversity impacts ecosystem productivity as much as
resources, disturbance, or herbivory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA)
109:10394–7.
Worm, B., E. B. Barbier, N. Beaumont, J. E. Duffy, C. Folke, B. S. Halpern, J. B. C. Jackson, H. K.
Lotze, F. Micheli, S. R. Palumbi, E. Sala, K. A. Selkoe, J. J. Stachowicz, and R. Watson.
2006. Impacts of biodiversity loss on ocean ecosystem services. Science 314:787–90.
Week 6 - Origins & maintenance of biodiversity
Costello, E. K., C. L. Lauber, M. Hamady, N. Fierer, J. I. Gordon, and R. Knight. 2009. Bacterial
community variation in human body habitats across space and time. Science 326:1694–7.
Tilman, D., and S. Pacala. 1993. The maintenance of species richness in plant communities. Pages
13–25 in R. E. Ricklefs and D. Schluter, editors. Species Diversity in Ecological
Communities: Historical and Geographical Perspectives. The University of Chicago Press,
Chicago.
Week 7 - Evolutionary community ecology & community phylogenetics
Cavender-Bares, J., K. H. Kozak, P. V. A. Fine, and S. W. Kembel. 2009. The merging of community
ecology and phylogenetic biology. Ecology Letters 12:693–715.
Peay, K. G., M. Belisle, and T. Fukami. 2012. Phylogenetic relatedness predicts priority effects in
nectar yeast communities. Proceedings of The Royal Society B 279:749–58.
Weiher, E. 2011. A primer of trait and functional diversity. Pages 175–193 in A. E. Magurran and B.
J. McGill, editors. Biological Diversity: Frontiers in Measurement and Assessment. Oxford
University Press, Oxford, UK.
Course schedule: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 2
Reading Assignments: Community Ecology (BIOL 419) – Spring 2014
Week 8 - Metacommunity ecology and neutral theory
Clark, J. S. 2009. Beyond neutral science. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 24:8–15.
Rosindell, J., S. Hubbell, F. He, and L. Harmon. 2012. The case for ecological neutral theory.
Trends in Ecology & Evolution 27:203–208.
Week 10 - Species interactions: Interspecific competition
Byers, J. 2000. Competition between two estuarine snails: implications for invasions of exotic
species. Ecology 81:1225–1239.
Connell, J. H. 1980. Diversity and the coevolution of competitors, or the ghost of competition past.
Oikos 35:131–138.
Mittelbach, G. G. 2012. Community Ecology. Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland.
[Read Chapter 4, Population Growth and Density Dependence, Pages 65-80]
Week 11 - Species interactions: Predation
Condon, M. A., S. J. Scheffer, M. L. Lewis, R. Wharton, D. C. Adams, and A. A. Forbes. 2014.
Lethal interactions between parasites and prey increase niche diversity in a tropical
community. Science 343:1240–4.
Godfray, H. C. J. 2014. Society, where none intrudes. Science 343:1213–4.
Paine, R. 1966. Food web complexity and species diversity. American Naturalist 100:65–75.
Week 12 - Food webs and interactions networks
Hairston, N., F. Smith, and L. Slobodkin. 1960. Community structure, population control, and
competition. American Naturalist 94:421–425.
Jones, C. G., R. S. Ostfeld, M. P. Richard, E. M. Schauber, and J. O. Wolff. 1998. Chain reactions
linking acorns to gypsy moth outbreaks and Lyme disease risk. Science 279:1023–1026.
Murdoch, W. 1966. Community structure, population control, and competition - A Critique.
American Naturalist 100:219–226.
Week 13 - Species coexistence in variable environments
Adler, P. B., J. HilleRisLambers, and J. M. Levine. 2007. A niche for neutrality. Ecology Letters
10:95–104.
Levine, J. M., and J. HilleRisLambers. 2009. The importance of niches for the maintenance of
species diversity. Nature 461:254–257.
Week 14 - Community ecology in an era of global environmental change
Hoegh-Guldberg, O., L. Hughes, S. McIntyre, D. B. Lindenmayer, C. Parmesan, H. P. Possingham,
and C. D. Thomas. 2008. Assisted colonization and rapid climate change. Science 321:345–
346.
Minteer, B., and J. Collins. 2010. Move it or lose it? The ecological ethics of relocating species under
climate change. Ecological Applications 20:1801–1804.
Ricciardi, A., and D. Simberloff. 2009. Assisted colonization is not a viable conservation strategy.
Trends in Ecology & Evolution 24:248–53.
Schwartz, M. W., J. J. Hellmann, and J. S. McLachlan. 2009. The precautionary principle in managed
relocation is misguided advice. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 24:474.
Vitt, P., K. Havens, and O. Hoegh-Guldberg. 2009. Assisted migration: part of an integrated
conservation strategy. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 24:473–474.
Course schedule: BIOL 419 – Community Ecology – Page 3