The course provides an introduction to the main ecological concepts, from individual adaptations to ecosystem processes, through populations and communities.
The last part of the course is devoted to the analysis of applied problems and conservation issues.
Smith T.M. and Smith R.L., 2015 Elements of Ecology, Pearson
CHELAZZI et al., 2004 Ecologia dagli organismi agli ecosistemi. Casa Editrice Ambrosiana, Milano
Learning Objectives
Knowledge:
knowledge of the phenomena which are relevant to the functioning of ecosystems
Competences:
understanding of the main physical chemical and biological processes taking place in the ecosystems
Skills (at the end of the course): skills for the analysis and comprehension of ecological problems, and ability to interpretat of ecological data.
Prerequisites
Basic zoology, botany and microbiology
Teaching Methods
Lectures and seminars: 64 hours
Laboratory activities: 12 hours
Further information
Frequency of lectures, practice and lab: highly recommended
Study materials: lecture handouts and lab materials will be provided.
Type of Assessment
Oral test
Course program
1) Introduction.
Brief history of Ecology. Fundamentals of Ecology.
2) Ecology of organisms
Effects of environmental factors on the survival and distribution of organisms. Environmental conditions. Energy budgets of organisms. The ecological niche. Environmental resources. Functional responses. Ecological applications in ecotoxicology.
3) Population Ecology
Basic principles and definitions. Static and dynamic methods in population ecology. Simple growth models: Malthusian and logistic models in continuous and discrete time. Stage- and age- structured populations. Effects of changing environmental conditions on the growth of populations. Intraspecific competition. Interspecific competition. Lotka-Volterra model for two interacting populations. Applications of population ecology: management of natural populations, optimal harvesting.
4) Community and ecosystem ecology
Definition of community. The structure and functioning of ecological communities. Species richness and diversity. Methods to measure biological diversity. Direct and indirect gradient analysis. Ecological succession: autogenic and allogenic, primary and secondary. Factors affecting community heterogeneity. Ecosystems. Biogeochemical cycles of matter: water, sediment, carbon and other elements cycles. Anthropogenic changes of biogeochemical cycles.
5) Biodiversity, spatio-temporal patterns. Fundamentals of applied ecology and conservation biology.