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Coral Reef Ecology
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Instructors:
Carlos Ormond, Ph. D. Candidate Elizabeth McGinty, Ph.D. Candidate |
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Laís Chaves, Ph.D. Candidate Federal University of Pernanbuco Department of Oceanography Recife-PE, Brazil Email: chaveslais  yahoo.com.br |
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* Click here
to watch a short video created by The Nature Conservancy on their current
coral reef project in the Bocas del Toro region.
This course is designed to promote the desire for not only discovery and advanced understanding of coral reef ecosystems from an integrated ecological perspective but also an appreciation and understanding of the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) culture. In addition to learning coral reef ecosystem dynamics, organism identification, and experimental design, this course will also investigate human dimensions in coral reef ecosystems, both past and present. To compliment the course, students will be exposed to both Spanish and Portuguese in order to encourage students to interact with the both the local and LAC communities.
By taking an integrated multidisciplinary approach, this course will demonstrate the importance of melding traditional approaches to understanding and investigating coral reef ecosystems with the human dimension. A large component of the course will involve field and community work, complimented by lectures and discussions on daily course readings. The course will require the completion of group assignments, as well as an individual research project that may be as much sociological as it is ecological in theory. Therefore, the course will not only be of interest to those of you in the natural sciences but also those of you from the social sciences.
NOTE: Dive certification is not necessary to enroll in this course, but what is required is an attraction to the ocean and a comfort in being in it. For SCUBA- certified (PADI, NAUI, or SSI certified) students who will be diving, there is a $100 Lab Fee with this course, which covers dive tank, air and dive weight rental. All students will require snorkel equipment (mask and fins) and those with SCUBA certification are expected to bring their own BCD, regulator, and most importantly proof of certification. There is the possibility of renting dive equipment as well as receiving dive certification from the local dive shops. If this is something that interests you, please contact Carlos Ormond, for more information..
Required
Texts:
Humann, P. and N. Deloach Reef Coral Identification:
Humann, P. and N. Deloach Reef Creature
Identification:
Humann, P. and N. Deloach Reef Fish Identification:
Recommended
Texts:
Deloach. N. Reef Fish Behaviour:
Other
Important Texts:
Compagno, L., Dando, M. and S. Fowler. Sharks
of the World.
Aronson,
R. B. (ed.). 2006. Geological Approaches to Coral Reef Ecology.
Springer,
Birkeland, C. (ed.) 1997. Life
and Death of Coral Reefs. Springer,
Gotelli,
N. and A. M. Ellison.
Lectures
and Laboratory/Field Work
Lectures will most often be held in the morning starting at 0830 in order to prepare
the students for laboratory/ field work in the afternoon. Field and laboratory
exercises, of course depending on weather, will be scheduled to start at 1330 each
day. Evening discussions will occur after supper in order for the class to debrief on
daily events.
Evaluation
Students will be evaluated on their active participation in the class and in the field;
on reaction paper assignments from daily readings; on discussion paper assignments
to help students work towards their research project; on a research proposal; on a
final research paper; and lastly, on an oral presentation.
Additional
Course Information
Grading Up to 6 units of credit will be given, 3 for the class work portion and 3 for
the fieldwork portion. The instructor will provide a breakdown of points earned and
final letter grade to your academic institution. Please arrange for credit through your
faculty/department or academic advisor.
Previous Student References
Below
is a list of students who have taken this course. You are welcome
to contact them regarding this course and their experience at ITEC.
Andrew Calhoun, M.Sc.
Student
NOVA Southeastern University
Fort Lauderdale-Davie, FL, U.S.A.
Email : ac1706@nova.edu
Amy Fehr, B.Sc.
Student
University of British Columbia
Kelowna, BC, Canada
Email: amyfehr@msn.com
Anna Kaufman, B.A.
Student
Connecticut College
New London, CT, U.S.A.
Email: akaufman@conncoll.edu
Liat Krongrad, B.A. Student
New College of Florida
Sarasota, FL, U.S.A.
Email: liat.krongrad@ncf.edu
Whitney Mann, Ph.D. Student
University of Texas- Arlington
Arlington, TX, U.S.A.
Email: wtmann@uta.edu
Micah Marty, B.A. (2010)
St. Olaf College
Northfield, MN, U.S.A.
Email: micahjmarty@gmail.com
Michael Meyers, B.Sc. (2008)
Oglethorpe University
Atlanta, GA, U.S.A.
Email: bluemike1@yahoo.com
Michelle Nagy, B.Sc.
Student
University of Maryland
College Park, MD, U.S.A.
Email: mnagy@umd.edu
Christian Paullin, B.Sc.
Student
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont, CA, U.S.A
Email: cpaullin12@cmc.edu
Jenna Pieczonka, B.Sc.
Student
University of Texas- Arlington
Arlington, TX, U.S.A.
Email: jenna.pieczonka@mavs.uta.edu
Adara (Tehani) Withers, B.Sc.
University of Waikato Hamilton, New Zealand
Email: adarawithers2@gmail.com
Further Inquiries
The instructor welcomes those with additional questions
or in need of more detailed information.
