BIO 415

PLANT TAXONOMY

SPRING 2005

General Information

Class hours

3 lecture, 3 lab hours per week, 4 credit hours

Instructor

Tina Ayers
Office: BS 304/305
Office hours: Friday 2-4 or by appointment
Telephone: 523-9482
E-mail: tina.ayers@nau.edu

Teaching Assistant

Mar-Elise Hill
Office: BS 314
Office Hours: Tuesdays 10-12 or by appointment
Telephone: 523-7242
E-mail: mar-elise.hill@nau.edu

Course Prerequisites

  • BIO 284 Introductory Botany or equivalent.

  • BIO 414 Native Plants of Northern Arizona is highly recommended.

Course Description

This course is designed for students seeking careers (as field biologists or research scientists) that require the knowledge necessary to identify seed plants. The lectures will present all of the major temperate families and some tropical families in a phylogenetic context (using cladistic methodologies) as well as special topics including origins of major groups, higher level classification, species concepts, speciation, breeding systems, polyploidy, biogeography, etc... During each week, the Monday and Wednesday (if needed) lecture sessions will cover the families that we will see Wednesday in lab. Additional topics will be covered during lecture sessions not occupied by families or an exam. For useful information see the study guides on this website and follow the links to additional resources.

Course Objectives

Upon completion of this course students should have a thorough understanding of the diverse morphology of vascular plants and how morphology (and other criteria) are used to group plants in a heirarchical system that reflects evolutionary history. At the end of the semester you should be able to recognize all of the major gymnosperm families and genera, the 11 subclasses of angiosperms, and approximately 108 families, subfamilies, and major genera. You should also be able to identify to species any native or naturalized plant as well as many cultivated plants using keys and descriptions in standard floras.

Required Materials

Judd, Walter S., Christopher S. Campbell, Elizabeth A. Kellogg, Peter F. Stevens, Michael, J. Donoghue. 2004. Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach. 2nd edition. Sinauer & Associates. [You must purchase the much improved second edition of this text. Do not buy first edition!!!!]

Dissecting equipment, including a millimeter ruler, fine forceps (two pairs recommended), and probes. Ruler and poor-quality forceps may be purchased from the art supplies counter at the bookstore. Basic and quality forceps (#5's) may be purchased from teaching assistant during the first two labs; approximate cost range $3-16. We will make probes in lab. Do not purchase.

Three-ring binder with dividers for notes on subclasses, families, drawing paper, pencils.

Highly Recommended Additional Materials

Hand-lens (7x-10x) available at art/drafting stores and knife shops or on line at many places such as (http://www.kooters.com/handlens.html#select_lens).

Harris, J. G and M. W. Harris. 1994. Plant Identification Terminology. Spring Lake, Utah, Spring Lake Publishing. (available from general books dept. of bookstore--ca $18)

Heywood, V. H. Flowering Plants of the World. New York, Oxford University Press, 1993. (available from the general books dept. of bookstore but only if you are rich--ca $55)

Additional References on Reserve at the Library

Cronquist, A. An Integrated System of Classificiation of Flowering Plants. New York: Columbia University Press, 1981, 1993.

Heywood, V. H. Flowering Plants of the World. New York, Oxford University Press, 1993.

Takhtajan, A. Diversity and Classification of Flowering Plants. New York: Columbia Univ. Press, 1997.

Zomlefer, W. Guide to Flowering Plant Families. Univ. of North Carolina Press. Chapel Hill, NC, 1994.

Grading

Lecture: Three preliminary exams (60, 80, and 100 points respectively).
Final comprehensive exam Monday, May 9th (150 points).
Lab: Thirteen short in-lab assignments and lab notebook (40 points). Three preliminary lab practicals (50 points each), scheduled for Tuesday evenings from 7-9 pm. Ninty percent of the second and third practicals will be on current section, 10 percent will be review for final. Final comprehensive lab practical (100 points), will be given on Wednesday, May 4th, during regular lab period.
Collection A herbarium collection of 10 different species is required. Each species must be identified completely (with authority) and should include complete label data (plant description if appropriate, physical locality including state,county, location, habitiat, lat/long or UTM, elevation, associated species, date) and enough material for 3 duplicate specimens. Each collection will be worth 10 points (100 points total possible for collection graded upon quality and uniqueness of material, identification, and locality information).
Total possible780 points. The course grade will be based on the combined total points from lecture, plant collection, and laboratory. Grades will be assigned on the following percentage basis: 90% or above= A; 80-89%=B; 70-79%=C; 60-69%=D; below 60%=F.

No makeup exams, quizzes, or practicals will be given unless arrangements are made in advance. Lecture exams will be a combination of fill in the blank, diagrams and short answer/essay. Lecture quizzes will be short answer (i.e., distinguish family #1 from #2; draw a cladogram depicting relationships between x, y, z). Lab practicals will be short answer (i.e., the family, genus and/or species of a group of plants on display); some use of keys will be allowed.

Students should review and abide by the policies outlined in the policy statement including Safe Working and Learning Environment, Students with Disabilities, Institutional Review Board, Academic Integrity, and Insurance. Questions regarding these policies should be brought to the instructor's attention. footer
Tina Ayers Meredith Jabis Schedule Syllabus Web Resources Webmaster