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Course Details

Spring 2012-2013
EEB 338 / LAS 351 (STL)   na, npdf

Tropical Biology

Yves F. Basset

ENROLLMENT BY APPLICATION OR INTERVIEW. DEPARTMENTAL PERMISSION REQUIRED.

"Tropical Biology" is an intensive, three-week field course given at four sites in Panama, examining the origins, maintenance and major interactions among terrestrial plants and animals. The course provides the opportunity to appreciate (1) floral and faunal turnover among four rainforest sites (beta-diversity); and (2) floral and faunal turnover along vertical gradients, from ground to upper canopy, at two rainforest sites (vertical stratification). Students carry out individual projects at the sites. Fieldwork is supported by six orientation walks that introduce participants to common orders and families of plants and arthropods.

Sample reading list:
Whitmore, T.C., An Introduction to Tropical Rain Forests, 2nd edition
See instructor for complete list

Reading/Writing assignments:
Students carry out individual projects in the field. Orientation lectures and informal walks help them choose projects, and report on them with scientific standards. Group and individual projects aiming at testing particular hypotheses with basic statistics are suggested, but students are encouraged to propose their own. Students report on all projects in Word following standard publication guidelines and deliver informal PowerPoint presentations before the class.

Requirements/Grading:
Lab Reports - 50%
Oral Presentation(s) - 25%
Class/Precept Participation - 25%

Other Requirements:
Open to Juniors Only.

Prerequisites and Restrictions:
EEB 321 and enrollment in the EEB Spring semester tropical biology program in Panama..

Website:  http://striweb.si.edu/princeton/courses/tropical_ecology.html

Schedule/Classroom assignment:

Class numberSectionTimeDaysRoomEnrollmentStatus
41690 L01 TBA        Enrolled:19 Limit:17 Closed
41691 B99 TBA        Enrolled:19 Limit:17 Closed