2023-24 Academic Catalog

Ecosystem ecology involves the study of energy and material flow through systems, including both the biotic (animals, plants, microbes) and abiotic (soil, water, atmosphere) components. Topics include the major elemental cycles (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus), patterns of energy flow, and the controls of these fluxes for different ecosystems. Current environmental issues are emphasized as case studies, including climate change, land use change, human alterations of nutrient cycles, and biodiversity effects on ecosystems. Prerequisite: one 200 level course in Biology or Geology 230, 258, 285 or Environmental Studies 244, 254, 260, 265, 288; Biology 126