Conservation Biology

Conservation Biology BIOL 3470 Spring 2018

Tuesday & Thursday 12:25-1:45 PM, JTB 310 Weekly discussion session: Friday 2-3 PM

Professor: Çağan (Cha-an) H. Şekercioğlu, [email protected] Office: South Biology 250. Office Hours: Thursday 2-3 PM

Community Engaged Learning Coordinator: Amy Sibul [email protected]/801-585-7472. Office: Biol-086. Hours: Tues 10-10:30; Wed 11-12

Teaching assistants: Monte Neate-Clegg & Ethan Frehner. [email protected] & [email protected] Tel: 801 587 5661. Office: South Biology 241. Office Hours: Thursday 2-3 PM

Subject lines of e-mails to Dr. Çağan, Monte or Ethan should begin with BIOL 3470. Please use your U-mail account. Gmail, etc. messages may end up in our Spam folders.

Texts Introduction to Conservation Biology (ICB), 1st ed., Primack & Sher, May 2016.

Conservation Biology for All (CBFA), www.mongabay.com/conservation-biology-for-all.html

Additional weekly readings are on Canvas.

Course Objectives

This course will cover the essentials of conservation biology, a multidisciplinary field whose primary goals are to: 1) document the planet’s biodiversity, 2) study human impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems, 3) develop practical ways to prevent the extinctions of species and the loss of their ecological functions, and 4) protect and restore ecosystems and their services.

Conservation biology is a crisis discipline that aims to prevent extinctions and their negative consequences for ecosystems and people. The course will cover topics such as the value and threats to biodiversity, conservation of species and populations, conservation practice, climate change and other global conservation issues, ecosystem services, and sustainable development.

Please note that parts of this syllabus are subject to change

1 Course Description This is a survey course designed to give you the necessary background to begin to understand human impacts on ecological communities and their implications for biodiversity conservation. We will be learning about biological concepts that can help stem this degradation with a vision for our time. While our discussions will take place primarily within a biological setting, you will learn the importance of understanding the particular milieu (e.g. legal, bureaucratic, economic, etc.) within which a given management action needs to be carried out. Conservation biologists are challenged to bring an effective, rigorous scientific approach into an often chaotic and charged area. Even if you will not become a field ecologist or land manager, as a private citizen you will increasingly be called upon to evaluate such efforts and determine both public and private policy via ballot measures, membership in civic organizations, and which products and services you support. OUTLINE OF LECTURES Date Topic Reading 1/9 Introduction: what is conservation biology? ICB 1 1/11 The future of biodiversity. Bill Laurance CBFA Intro & 1 1/16 Where is biodiversity found? ICB 2; CBFA 2 1/18 What is the value of biodiversity? CBFA 3; CBFA 4 1/23 Ethical values ICB 3; CBFA 5 1/25 Habitat loss, overexploitation and climate change ICB 4; CBFA 8 1/30 Meeting with Community Engaged Learning partners ICB 5; CBFA 6 2/1 Extinction and vulnerability to extinction CBFA 10 2/6 Disease and invasive species ICB 6; CBFA 7 2/8 Population biology ICB 7 2/13 Populations, captive breeding, ex situ conservation CBFA 12 2/15 Case study: bear conservation research in Turkey CBFA 13 2/20 Problems of small populations. Bill Newmark 2/22 Protected areas ICB 8 2/27 Conservation & restoration outside protected areas ICB 9 3/1 Carnivore conservation. Chynoweth & Green CBFA 11 3/6 Community Engaged Learning (CEL) Workday 3/8 Restoration ecology ICB 10 3/13 Midterm 3/15 Bird conservation. JJ Horns & Monte Neate-Clegg 3/18-25 Spring Break 3/27 Plant conservation CBFA 9 3/29 Vultures and scavengers. Buechley & Frehner 4/3 Marine conservation. Vicky Rowantree 4/5 Sustainable living and local conservation ICB 11 4/10 Biodiversity conservation in Utah. Amy Sibul 4/12 Conservation as a career. Russ Norvell CBFA 15 4/17 CEL Presentations CBFA 14 4/19 CEL Presentations CBFA 16 4/24 International conservation ICB 12 5/2 Final. 10:30 AM-12:30 PM

2 Grading Grades are based on the quizzes, two exams, reading summaries, and class participation. Attendance and class participation: 10% Quizzes: 10% Midterm: 20% Final: 30% Paper summaries: 15% Attendance for CEL workday: 5% Attendance for CEL community partners: 10% CEL Project Presentation: 10%

Doing some type of outside assignment to improve your grade is not an option. You should spend your time trying to master the material presented in class.

Grading Scale: 95-100% = A 87-89% = B+ 77-79% = C+ 67-69% = D+ 90-94% = A- 83-86% = B 73-76% = C 63-66% = D 80-82% = B- 70-72% = C- 60-62% = D-

Credit/No Credit Grading Option: Students enrolled for the "CR/NCR" grading option must earn the equivalent of a C- or higher to receive "CR" grade and credit.

Discussion Sections You are recommended to attend them. They will be conducted by Ethan or Monte, with discussion initiated by questions from students. They will answer questions concerning the concepts from the lectures and the text. The sections will aid the students with their questions about the content and assignments and will help students prepare for exams.

Quizzes are unannounced, but we will typically have one every couple of weeks. Quizzes function partly as a mini-review of concepts and partly as a motivator for you to not fall behind on readings and other class work. Each quiz should take no more than 10 minutes and will cover recent lecture, reading, and/or lab material with short answers, multiple choice, and/or fill-in-the-blank questions. Quizzes are usually given at the beginning of a lecture period and cannot be made up (even if you arrive in time for the actual lecture itself). Please arrive promptly for each class and do not run the risk of missing a quiz. I will drop your lowest quiz score before calculating your overall quiz grade for the course. If you miss one quiz, its score will be automatically dropped and will not impact your overall score. No explanation or excuse is required

Exams The exams are designed to test your overall comprehension and ability to integrate concepts. No electronic devices, such as calculators, ipods or cell phones may be used during the exams. Neither books nor notes may be used during the exams. You must show your work and/or explain your reasoning to receive full credit for the correct answers. If you miss an exam for any reason, that exam will be given a score of zero. . The Final Exam is scheduled for Monday, May 2, 10:30 AM-12:30 PM in room JTB 310

3 (room subject to change). The exam will not be given early. No make-up Final exams will be given.

Making Up Exams There are only two circumstances under which you will be allowed to make up a missed exam: • You have spoken to me prior to the time that the exam was scheduled and I agreed that your reason for missing is legitimate. • There is a verifiable reason that accounts both for why you were unable to contact me prior to the exam and for why you were unable to attend the exam at its scheduled time. • IN ALL OTHER CASES YOU WILL RECEIVE A ZERO FOR THE EXAM.

Readings Go over the readings for the chapters covered for each week in lecture. Be prepared to discuss the papers in discussion section. You have prepared sufficiently if you can write a clear summary of the article, you can discuss the strengths and weakness of the article, and you have thought about additional work that could be done on the topic.

Summarizing Scientific Papers Reading scientific papers, agency reports, and even articles in the popular press can sometimes be difficult. It is very easy to get bogged down in the many details or controversies of a particular paper and lose sight of the main points. Consequently, reading a paper front to back does not necessarily guarantee understanding. Often you just need to mull it over in your head for a while. To make sure you have done so, each week you will turn in a two-paragraph summary of your impressions of one of the papers in a given week’s primary literature readings. The list is at the end of the Syllabus. Papers are listed under the dates for each lecture. Paper summaries are due each Tuesday at the start of class (i.e. Week 6 reading summary is due on the Tuesday of Week 6), with the exception of the first week of classes. You will not comment on every paper, but rather you will choose one paper that you find the most interesting from that week’s list (although you do need to read all of them). Start your summary off with a clear, single sentence set apart from the rest of your summary that describes the central theme or conclusion of the piece. Whenever possible, state this as a hypothesis. End your paper with 2 to 3 bullet points highlighting a strength of the paper and 2 to 3 bullet points highlighting a weakness of the paper.

Required Formats for Assignments The default format for submitting materials for this class is a printed hard copy. Unless specifically instructed to the contrary, the only time you should submit an assignment electronically is if you encounter an emergency and are unable to attend to the class the day an assignment is due (via e-mail). In the case where you missed class when an assignment is due and you electronically submitted a completed copy, we will not grade that submission, but rather use it to determine if you submitted the assignment on time (i.e. the start of the class). You are still responsible for submitting a hard copy of the

4 assignment to us as soon as practical following your absence. Failure to submit a hard copy constitutes a missed assignment and will result in zero points.

Administrative Assistant Laurie Bagley, LS205B. If you miss a returned exam Laurie will have them.

Standards of Conduct Students need to be aware of and follow university policy on academic conduct. This is a class with periodic quizzes, written assignments, and exams. Academic dishonesty in any form cannot be tolerated. This includes aiding others (directly or indirectly) in committing dishonest acts. On in-class quizzes and exams, protect your work. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the University Student Behavior committee for appropriate action. See University Regulations, Chapter X, Student code, Article XI proscribed conduct. Possible results of proven academic dishonesty range from no credit/points awarded for the disputed exercise to expulsion from the university.

Cheating, Plagiarism, And Other Forms of Academic Dishonesty All work that you submit as your own work must, in fact, be your own work. For example, if your paper presents the ideas of others, you must clearly indicate this by citing the source. Word-for-word language taken from other sources – books, papers, web sites, people, etc. – must be placed in quotation marks and the source identified. Likewise, work on tests and exams must be your own work, not copied or taken from other students’ work, and you must comply with instructions regarding use of books, notes, and other materials. In accordance with the University of Utah policy on academic dishonesty, students in this course who submit the work of others as their own (plagiarize), cheat on examinations, help other students cheat or plagiarize, or commit other acts of academic dishonesty will receive appropriate academic penalties, up to and including failing the course and expulsion. Papers with plagiarized ideas or language will be graded “F” and must be rewritten with proper use of quotations and referencing. The grade of “F” will remain the recorded grade on that assignment. Plagiarism or cheating on exams will result in an “F” on that exam, very likely resulting in a lower or possibly a failing final grade in the course overall. In cases where I have reason to believe the cheating or plagiarism was premeditated or planned, students may receive an “F” for the course.

Please consult with me on when and how to document sources if you have any possible questions about what might constitute an act of plagiarism or cheating.

Learning Assumptions & Expectations • Success is your choice! If you choose to be successful, I will be happy to help you. Each of you has the potential to succeed in this class. • Respect is one of the foundations of an environment conducive to learning. This class will have a positive and respectful learning environment. In class discussions, everyone should be courteous and respectful of others: disrespectful comments or behavior will not be tolerated. This includes silencing your cell phones, no texting, no web surfing, etc .

5 • One of the most important aspects of learning is being able to be an active listener. As you listen to your classmates, be attentive and supportive. Everyone has something valuable to contribute to our class and your success. • Our discussion will build from the readings so it is necessary that you complete all readings (except first week) before the assigned date. We will not be able to discuss everything covered in the readings, but you will be responsible for the content. • Times are tough and we talk about a lot of potentially depressing subjects in this course. Despite this, we all need to stay positive. Humor and a wry take on things help your overall comprehension, enjoyment, ability to focus, and comprehension. • I am always open to feedback as to how I can best meet your needs as a student. Feel free to make suggestions on how this course can be improved or adjusted. • You will attend all class sessions, arriving before the start of class.

Doing Well In This Course Focus on learning, not on your grade. Make sure you complete all of our assignments on time and do a thorough job. If you interact with the material and complete the course assignments, you should easily be able to pass this class. If you focus on cramming for quizzes or exams, you will miss out on most of what you are here for. This course should be fun and rewarding. Although it needs to be taken seriously and responsibly, this course should not create undue stress and anxiety. If you are having trouble with the assignments, not doing well on the exams, or having any other problems, please talk to me, Ethan or Monte.

Important Dates Last day to add a class without permission code: January 12 Last day to add, drop (delete), elect CR/NC, or audit term length and first session classes: January 19 Last day to withdraw: March 9 Classes end: April 24 Withdrawal is to decide not to complete the course and still avoid receiving a failing grade. Instead a W appears on your transcript. To withdraw, go to the registrar’s office and fill out the necessary form. Continuing the course past March 9 is to make the decision to complete the course.

Equal Access Provisions: The University of Utah seeks to provide equal access to its programs, services and activities for people with disabilities. If you will need accommodations in the class, reasonable prior notice needs to be given to the Center for Disability Services, 162 Olpin Union Building, 581-5020 (V/TDD). CDS will work with you and the instructor to make arrangements for accommodations. All written information in this course can be made available in alternative format with prior notification to the Center for Disability Services.

Accommodations Policy: The instructor does not grant content accommodation requests because the course content fulfills legitimate pedagogical goals.

6 Absences: Attendance is not mandatory but it is strongly recommended. There will be unannounced quizzes you cannot make up for. Concepts that are not covered in the book may be presented in the lectures. At the end of the semester, a good attendance record may make a positive difference. E.g. a high B may become a B+.

Reading List Read the required papers and choose one paper to summarize each week

January 9. Sutherland, W.J. et al. 2009. One hundred questions of importance to the conservation of global biological diversity. Conservation Biology 23: 557-567.

January 11. Laurance, B. & Ehrlich, P.R. 2016. Radical overhaul needed to halt Earth’s sixth great extinction event. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/radical- overhaul-needed-to-halt-earths-sixth-great-extinction-event-68221

Optional: Laurance, B. 2017. China’s growing footprint on the globe threatens to trample the natural world. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/chinas-growing- footprint-on-the-globe-threatens-to-trample-the-natural-world-88312

January 16. Pimm, S. L., Jenkins, C.N., Abell, R., Brooks, T.M., Gittleman, J.L., Joppa, L.N., Raven, P.H., Roberts, C.M., Sexton, J.O. 2014. The biodiversity of species, their rates of extinction, distribution, protection. Science 6187: 1246752.

January 18. Watson, R.T. and Costigan, P. 2011. What are the drivers causing loss of biodiversity and changes in ecosystem services? Pp. 3-11 in Djoglaf, A. and Dodds, F. (eds.) Biodiversity and Ecosystem Insecurity.

January 23. Sekercioglu, C.H. 2006. Increasing awareness of avian ecological function. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 21: 464-471.

January 25. Minteer, B.A. and J. P. Collins. 2005. Ecological ethics: Building a new tool kit for ecologists and biodiversity managers. Conservation Biology 19: 1803-1812.

January 30. Buechley, E. and Sekercioglu, C.H. 2013. Endangered Species. Pp. 159-175 in Grzimek’s Encyclopedia of Animal Life: Extinction. MacLeod, N. (Ed.). Gale Press. Michigan Hills.

February 1. Sekercioglu, C.H., Primack, R., Wormworth, J., 2012. Effects of climate change on tropical birds. Biological Conservation 148: 1-18.

Optional: Bregman, TP., Sekercioglu, Cagan H., Tobias, J. 2014. Global patterns and predictors of bird species responses to forest fragmentation: implications for ecosystem function and conservation. Biological Conservation 169: 372-383.

7 February 6. Schmidt, K.A. and Ostfeld, R.S. 2001. Biodiversity and the dilution effect in disease ecology. Ecology 82(3): 609-619.

February 8. Miller, B. W. Conway, R. P. Reading, C. Wemmer, D. Wildt, D. Kleiman et al., 2004. Evaluating the conservation mission of zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, and natural history museums. Conservation Biology 18: 86-93.

February 13. Bulman, C.R. et al. 2007. Minimum viable population size, extinction debt, and the conservation of declining species. Ecological Applications 17: 1460-1473.

February 15. Sekercioglu, C.H. 2012. Turkey's first wildlife corridor links bear, wolf & lynx populations to the Caucasus forests. National Geographic. tinyurl.com/a3bvr3m

Sekercioglu, C.H. 2013. Brown bears film their lives with Turkey's first CritterCams. National Geographic. tinyurl.com/bxnu6r6

February 20. Krajicik, K. 2006. The lost world of the Kihansi toad. Science 311: 1230- 1232.

Optional: McAloose et al. 2010. Kihansi spray toad reintroduction guidelines.

February 22. Wilkie, D. S. et al. 2006. Parks and people: assessing the human welfare effects of establishing protected areas for biodiversity conservation. Conservation Biology 20: 247-249.

February 27. Hannah, L. et al. 2007. Protected area needs in a changing climate. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 5(3): 131-138.

March 1. Chynoweth, M.W., Çoban, E., Altın, Ç., Şekercioğlu, Ç.H. 2016. Human- wildlife conflict as a barrier to large carnivore management and conservation in Turkey. Turkish Journal of Zoology 40: 972-983.

Optional: Donlan, J. et al. 2006. Re-wilding North America. Nature 436: 913-914.

March 6. Ripple, W.J., et al. 2014. Status and ecological effects of the world’s largest carnivores. Science 343: 151-163.

March 8. Sekercioglu, C.H. 2011. Promoting community-based bird monitoring in the tropics: conservation, research, environmental education, capacity-building, and local incomes. Biological Conservation 151: 69-73.

March 27. Frehner, E.H., Buechley, E., Şekercioğlu, Ç.H. Subterranean caching of domestic cow (Bos taurus) carcasses by North American badgers (Taxidea taxus) in the Great Basin Desert, Utah. Western North American Naturalist 77: 124-129.

8 March 29. Horns, J.J., Buechley, E., Aktay, L., Çoban, E., Kırpık, M.A., Herman, J.M., Şaşmaz, Y., Şekercioğlu, Ç.H. 2016. Geolocator tracking of great reed warbler identifies key regions of importance to migratory wetland specialists throughout the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. Condor 118: 835-849.

April 3. Hall, M. et al. 2007. 10 solutions to save the oceans. Conservation 8 (3): 23-30.

Optional: Cox, T.M. and 5 others. 2007. Comparing the effectiveness of experimental and implemented bycatch measures: The ideal and the real. Conservation Biology 21: 1155-1164.

April 5. Beier, P. and Noss, RF. 1998. Do habitat corridors provide connectivity? Conservation Biology 12(6): 1241-1252

April 10. Stem, C. et al. 2005. Monitoring and evaluation in conservation: A review of trends and approaches. Conservation Biology 19: 295-309.

April 12. Sekercioglu, C.H., Daily, G.C., Ehrlich, P.R. 2004. Ecosystem consequences of bird declines. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 101: 18042-18047.

April 17. Kitzes, J., Berlow, E., Conlisk, E., Erb, K., Iha, K., Martinez, N., Newman, E. A., Plutzar, C., Smith, A. B. and Harte, J. 2017. Consumption-based conservation targeting: linking biodiversity loss to upstream demand through a global wildlife footprint. Conservation Letters 10: 531–538.

April 19. Sekercioglu, C.H., Anderson, S., Akçay, E., Bilgin, R. 2011. Turkey’s rich natural heritage under assault. Science 334: 1637-1639.

Optional: Sekercioglu, C.H. et al. 2011. Turkey’s globally important biodiversity in crisis. Biological Conservation 144: 2752–2769.

April 24. Cohn, J. 2008. Citizen science: Can volunteers do real research? BioScience 58: 192-197.

9 10 Dr. Çağan’s Conservation Biology Course BIOL 3470

I have read our syllabus and now know what to expect from this class, both in terms of the general layout of our course and desired learning outcomes. In particular, I am aware of the workload this class requires each and every week. I am aware that it is my responsibility to keep up with all assigned reading and submit all my assignments by their deadlines. Missing deadlines, poor writing, or not keeping up with our readings will harm both my assignment grades and my overall performance in our course. I also understand that studying in groups, frequently reviewing past material, and reviewing my lecture notes are great ways to improve my grade and (more importantly) boost my comprehension of the concepts and facts of conservation.

Name (please print neatly): ______

Today’s Date: ______

Signature: ______

Please fill in, sign, and hand in to Ethan or Monte.