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Module Title
LI Alpine and Glacial Ecology in Norway
School
School of Bioscience
Department
School of Biosciences
Module Code
03 22127
Module Lead
PROF Pritchard
Level
Intermediate Level
Credits
20
Semester
Semester 1
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions
None
Contact Hours
Lecture-10 hours
Seminar-5 hours
Tutorial-5 hours
Project supervision-21 hours
Demonstration-15 hours
Practical Classes and workshops-3 hours
Supervised time in studio/workshop-6 hours
Fieldwork-15 hours
Guided independent study-120 hours Total: 200 hours
Exclusions
Description
The module is a field course based in Finse, Norway. Six days are spent in the field observing habitats typical of the Low alpine region. A major feature of the course is the opportunity to directly observe succession occurring at the snout of retreating glaciers. There are three related components the course:
1) Observation of unique alpine and glacial habitats
2) Practical experience of ecological sampling and analysis
3) Student centred learning in group projects
1) Describing habitats and adaptations: The field centre is at an altitude of 1222 m in a Low Alpine environment. There are a range of classical habitats, including glaciers, within an hours walk of the field station at Finse. The various organisms and habitats will be described in the field. The direct experience of the environment will be underpinned by a series of lectures in the field station covering the underlying ecological and physiological principles. Where appropriate the experience of the Birmingham Staff will be supplemented by guest lectures from staff at the Universities of Bergen and Oslo. Students will produce essays documenting the description of the local ecology
2) Collecting and analysing field data: A number of basic field techniques will be undertaken by the whole class, focusing on the sampling approaches necessary to obtain data on the flora and (mainly) invertebrate fauna of the region. These will concentrate on quadrat and pitfall trapping respectively, building on the theoretical introduction of these strategies in a previous course (BIO119). The group will analyse the collected data, concentrating on the relevant statistical methods. These individual practical tasks will be written up as a series of short practical/field reports
3) Group project: Students will be assigned to groups of four. Each group will be assigned an individual ecological question that they will address in the field using the techniques and concepts introduced in the course. Students will be expected to contribute to class progress meetings over the week. The finding s of group project will be presented orally to the class as a whole and written up as a formal scientific report
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the module the student should be able to:
Identify a number of key species in this environment
Document the major drivers in the low alpine/glacial environment
Describe the range of physiological and behavioural adaptations that allow organisms to survive and reproduce
Show competence in some basic techniques for sampling and analysing plant distribution
Show competence in some basic techniques for studying animal diversity and distribution
Keep a formal record of data collected in the field
Work in groups to experimental address an ecological question
Communicate research project outputs to an audience of their peers
Assessment: Field course book (10%); Field course performance (including individual species description, group oral presentation and field note book (10%); Written report on field course project (2000 words) (40%); 2 hour class test (data interpretation and SAQ) (40%)