Course: Excursions in soil biology

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Course title Excursions in soil biology
Course code KBE/016
Organizational form of instruction Lesson
Level of course unspecified
Year of study not specified
Frequency of the course In each academic year, in the winter semester.
Semester Winter
Number of ECTS credits 3
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course unspecified
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Tůma Jiří, Mgr. Ph.D.
  • Devetter Miloslav, RNDr. Ph.D.
Course content
Sampling of soil, demonstration of methods in the field, samples of each soil animal group Macrofauna and megafauna (ecological role of macrofauna, life strategies, estimation of earthworm abundance, monitoring of tunnels) Mesofauna and microfauna (role in ecosystem, humus typology, mechanisms of humus accumulation, sampling and extraction, abundance estimation in different ecosystem types) Microflora (importance in ecosystem - main functional groups of soil microorganisms, diversity and abundance - traditional methods of cultivation, molecular technics, antibiotic resistance in soil bacteria) Practical runs partially in the field and in laboratory.

Learning activities and teaching methods
Monitoring, Demonstration, Excursion
Learning outcomes
Aim of the course is demonstration of soil life and methods for soil studies in the field in natural consequences. Except routine ability of sampling and sample analysis for main groups of soil life, are students experienced in soil environment and reach the knowledge of interactions in soil.
Student should acquire a relationship to the soil as an environment and gain insight into the laws that exists there. It should gain a cross-sectional overview of groups of soil organisms as well as the specifics of the soil environment itself.
Prerequisites
Introduction to the field, no prerequisites

Assessment methods and criteria
Seminar work

Required attendance on more than half of excursions.
Recommended literature
  • Fundamentals of soil ecology / David C. Coleman, D.A. Crossley, Jr.1996, Academic Press, San Diego.
  • Soil ecology / Patrick Lavelle and Alister V. Spain 2005, Kluwer Academic Publishers.
  • The biology of soil : a community and ecosystem approach / Richard D. Bardgett 2005 Oxford University Press.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester