| Course title | Community Ecology |
|---|---|
| Course code | KBO/426 |
| Organizational form of instruction | Lecture + Lesson |
| Level of course | Master |
| Year of study | not specified |
| Frequency of the course | In academic years starting with an odd year (e.g. 2017/2018), in the winter semester. |
| Semester | Winter |
| Number of ECTS credits | 6 |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Status of course | Compulsory, Compulsory-optional |
| Form of instruction | unspecified |
| Work placements | unspecified |
| Recommended optional programme components | None |
| Course availability | The course is available to visiting students |
| Lecturer(s) |
|---|
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| Course content |
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Content of lectures: Community composition and diversity: species-area relationships, rank abundance curves. indices of diversity, alpha and beta diversity. Species coexistence and competition, bottom up and top down control. Historical vs. ecological factors, and their effect on community composition. Community composition and life-history strategies and functional classification of organisms. Food webs. Predator-prey and host plant herbivore from the community perspective. Succession. Temporal variability. Spatial variability, metapopulations, metacommunities, biogeography. Diversity and community functioning. Diversity an community composition on environmental gradients. Nature conservation, biological control and other applied aspects Content of practices: Practical will be composed of two parts. In the first, data will be collects in a field trip. In the second, running through the year, the data will be analyzed by corresponding methods
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| Learning activities and teaching methods |
Monologic (reading, lecture, briefing), Demonstration, Individual preparation for exam, Excursion
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| Learning outcomes |
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The student will get the basic knowledge of the functional community ecology. The student will get information on the mechanisms controlling the composition and function of a community. After finishing the course, he will be able to test mechanistical hypotheses on the functioning of ecological communities.
Students will understand basic principles of community ecology. They will also learn methods of sampling and data collection, and also of the data analysis. |
| Prerequisites |
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Knowledge in the extend of the basic Ecology course are expected.
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| Assessment methods and criteria |
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Interview, Combined exam, Seminar work
Students actively participate in the practicals, and present there on a selected topic. |
| 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): Botany (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Zoology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Ecosystem Biology (1) | Category: Ecology and environmental protection | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Botany (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Botany (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Zoology (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Botany (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |
| Faculty: Faculty of Science | Study plan (Version): Botany (1) | Category: Biology courses | - | Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: - |