| Course title | Animal Ecology |
|---|---|
| Course code | KBE/124 |
| Organizational form of instruction | Lecture |
| Level of course | Master |
| 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 | Compulsory, Compulsory-optional |
| Form of instruction | Face-to-face |
| Work placements | This is not an internship |
| Recommended optional programme components | None |
| Lecturer(s) |
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| Course content |
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Content of lectures: 1. Human-animal interactions, history of ecology. Levels of organisation: individuals - populations - communities. 2. Environmental conditions, limiting factors, ecological niche, demographic processes in animals. 3. Individual growth and body size in animals. Energy budgets, metabolic ecology, allometric scaling of vital and demographic rates. Models of individual growth. 4. Reproduction: main strategies and population-level consequences. Reproductive investment, reproductive systems, parental care,maternal effects. 5. Mortality and its main causes. r- and K-strategists, slow-fast continuum. Life history strategies, measuring of fitness. 6. Role of space. Metapopulations, movement of individuals and spreading of populations, mechanisms of dispersal. Migration and homing. Island biogeography. 7. Environmental variation. Adaptations to seasonality, phenotypic plasticity, bet-hedging. Escape in time, dormancy. 8. Trophic interactions and energy flow in animals, trophic chains and food webs. Asymmetric and symmetric competition, cohort cycles. Direct and indirect interactions, cascading effects. 9. Predation, intraguild predation and cannibalism. Foraging strategies, defence mechanisms in prey: consequences for life histories and communities. Functional response. Optimal foraging. 10. Herbivores, parasites and parasitoids. Diversity and trophic specialization, adaptations of herbivores and plants. 11. Biomes: characteristic animals, their role in communities, and adaptations to environmental conditions. Ecosystem engieneers. 12. Current problems: invasive species, exploitation of animal populations, impacts of climate change. Content of practicals: -- (Animal Ecology Practicals are a separate course, KBE/125)
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| Learning activities and teaching methods |
Monologic (reading, lecture, briefing), Dialogic (discussion, interview, brainstorming), Projection
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| Learning outcomes |
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The course systematically extends the knowledge gained in the general Ecology course, with emphasis on the specific properties and acitivities of animals. It summarizes the most important theories and empirical observations of animals and their interactions with the environment. It emphasizes the role of interactions on both individual and species level for the animal-environment relationships, in which the environment contains both organismal and abiotic components.
The student will gain new knowledge in animal ecology including basic applications of theoretical concepts in fieldwork and nature conservation studies. He/she will be able to understand simple scientific studies dealing with the topics covered by the course, and put them in the general context. |
| Prerequisites |
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The student already passed the Ecology (KBE/022) course or gained basic knowledge of ecology elsewhere.
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| Assessment methods and criteria |
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Test
Student must pass a written test (i.e. obtain at least 50% of all points) to successfully pass the exam. |
| Recommended literature |
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| Study plans that include the course |
| Faculty | Study plan (Version) | Category of Branch/Specialization | Recommended semester | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Biology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Zoology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Ecosystem Biology (1) | Category: Ecology and environmental protection | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Secondary Schools Teacher Training in Biology (1) | Category: Pedagogy, teacher training and social care | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Zoology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Zoology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Ecosystem Biology (1) | Category: Ecology and environmental protection | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Ecosystem Biology (1) | Category: Ecology and environmental protection | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Ecosystem Biology (1) | Category: Ecology and environmental protection | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Biology for future teachers (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Secondary Schools Teacher Training in Biology (1) | Category: Pedagogy, teacher training and social care | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Winter |