GENERAL INFORMATION ON ESRM 441 LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY

ESRM 441 is a 5-credit course in landscape ecology, including basic concepts, quantitative aspects of landscape measurement, human interactions with and interpretations of landscapes, and applications in natural resource management. 

Class hours are 1:30-3:20 on MWF.  In general, the first hour will be a lecture followed by a break and discussion of the lecture material and reading assignments in the second hour.  The course will include some laboratory sessions designed to expose students to some aspects of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and quantitative approaches to the analysis of landscapes. 

Two field trips are planned.  The first is tentative--a single day trip on January 13 but it depends upon weather conditions; we will discuss this in class.  The major field trip is:

             March 2-4, 2007             Columbia River Gorge

during which we will experience this complex landscape and efforts to manage human use of the area under the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area administered by the Forest Service;  we will also get a lift into the canopy of an old-growth forest at the Wind River Canopy Crane Research Facility, weather permitting.

Class instructors are Professor Jerry F. Franklin (jff@u.washington.edu) and Teaching Assistant James Freund (jafchen@u.washington.edu).  __________________________  . 

For information on Professor Franklin see his web site at http://weber.u.washington.edu/~wrccf/Franklin/ .

Prof. Jerry F. Franklin                                            James Freund

Office: Anderson Hall 203                                     Office: Winkenwerder Hall 208

Phone: 206-543-2138                                            Phone: 206-543-4512

Office Hours: 1130-130 & 330-400, MWF             Office hours: 3:30-4:30 MF

Meetings with the TA outside of office hours may also be arranged. 

The textbooks for the course are:

Turner, M.G., Gardner, R.H., and O'Neill, R.V. 2001. Landscape ecology in theory and practice: pattern and process. New York, New York: Springer-Verlag, Inc. 401 pp.

Lindenmayer, D.B. and Franklin, J.F. 2002. Conserving forest biodiversity: a comprehensive multiscaled approach. Washington, DC: Island Press, Inc. 351 pp.

In addition, there is a required course packet (available at the Communications Copy Center, B-042 Communications) of several reprinted articles.  Additional materials will be handed out in class.  Regular reading assignments will be made.  Students often will be asked to provide written comments, questions, critiques, etc. of the readings; these reports should typically be 400-600 words (1 1/2-2 double spaced pages) unless otherwise indicated.     

Course grades are based upon the following activities:

Field trip reports (100 + 200):                                                   300 points

Written comments on reading assignments (11):                     800 points

Examinations, midterm and final        (400 + 500):                    900 points

Total points attainable:                                                              2000 points

Details will be provided on expectations regarding the field trip reports.  Examinations will incorporate material covered on the field trips.  The final examination will be an essay type, take home examination due anytime during finals week.

College of Forest Resources

Course Polices

Please include the following statements on all syllabi and webpages for courses taught by CFR faculty.

Academic Integrity

Plagiarism, cheating, and other misconduct are serious violations of your contract as a student. We expect that you will know and follow the University's policies on cheating and plagiarism. Any suspected cases of academic misconduct will be handled according to University regulations. More information, including definitions and examples, can be found at:  http://depts.washington.edu/grading/issue1/honesty.htm

Disability Accommodations

To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact Disabled Student Services, 448 Schmitz, (206)543-8924 (V/TTY). If you have a letter from Disabled Student Services indicating that you have a disability which requires academic accommodations, please present the letter to the instructor so we can discuss the accommodations needed for this class.

Field Trip Insurance

Field Trip insurance is strongly recommended for all students registered in any CFR course which includes field trips. Students who do not have the regular University health insurance or adequate personal coverage should consider obtaining a special short-term policy at $0.85 per day for the course of the field trips. Information and applications are available on pages 27-29 at: http://www.washington.edu/admin/risk/documents/Field_Trip_Guidelines.pdf  The completed application and payment (made out to the University of Washington) must be made to the Cashier's Office, 129 Schmitz Hall before the trip.