Dendrology
Botany 402
(cross-listed with Forest & Wildlife Ecology)
This course focuses on identification, ranges, uses, and some ecological characteristics of evergreen and deciduous woody plants, focusing on native species and common exotics. We will be outdoors every week until early November, walking a lot and practicing a practical approach to identifying woody species.
Taught every fall
General Ecology
Botany 460
(cross-listed with Integrated Biology and Forest & Wildlife Ecology)
Ecology is the study of the interaction of organisms with each other and their physical environment. Relationships within and among individual organisms, populations, communities, ecosystems, landscapes, and the biosphere are discussed, often in quantitative terms, in both field and laboratory settings. The course is comprised of lecture, discussion, and lab; students will design and complete a semester-long research project.
Taught each semester, various instructors; Sara teaches in odd-numbered spring semesters.
Paleoecology Seminar
Botany 950, course number varies
Paleoecological history, methods, current research, and applications are among the topics covered in this seminar-style graduate level course. We typically focus on ecological questions and on paleoecological methods that allow strong inference of ecological processes.
Offered as needed, typically as a seminar, not on regular schedule
Historical Ecology
Botany 672
(cross-listed with Integrative Biology and Forest & Wildlife Ecology)
Co-taught with Dr. David Mladenoff
This seminar-style course examines the changes in and interactions among ecosystem patterns and processes through time: the history of an ecosystem. Reconstructing historical patterns, processes, and legacy effects can be key to understanding how present conditions came about, how ecosystems function, and how management and restoration decisions might influence future conditions.
We welcome seniors and graduate students from a broad range of disciplines, including biological, physical, social, and natural sciences, the humanities, resource management and conservation. Students complete a semester-long project.
Usually offered in even-numbered spring semesters.
Principles and Applications of Forensic Botany
Botany 575
Alex Wiedenhoeft, lead instructor
A broad overview of forensic science, focusing on forensic botany with emphasis on methods other than DNA analysis. Students will read case studies and other works from the forensic literature, including some primary research literature that underpins forensic applications, and articulate the botanical details subtending the techniques discussed. The primary emphasis of the course is on how forensic science broadly, forensic biology in general, and forensic botany in particular integrate results of basic science in a societally and scientifically relevant way.
Offered spring semester in even-numbered years
Pollen Morphology
Botany course number varies
Pollen morphology, identification, and applications of pollen analysis are covered in this course.
Offered as needed, not on regular schedule