Summer Flora 2015
From EEBedia
EEB 4272
Summer Session I
June 1st to July 1st
M/W/F 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
TLS 179
Instructor
Nora Mitchell (nora.mitchell@uconn.edu)
Contact me for a permission number
Course description
New England is home to a diverse and thriving selection of plants, many of which reach their peak exuberance during the summer. Proper identification of plants and an understanding of their interactions with the environment are important facets that aid in the appreciation of our natural resources. In this course, students will:
- Learn to recognize by sight some of the more common plant species
- Develop a skill set for identifying unknown plant species
- Gain experience in plant census, collection, and curation techniques
- Learn the system of classifying plant diversity and of naming plant species
- Learn about the diversity of plant habitats in New England
- Learn about invasive species and conservation issues in plant biology
The course focuses primarily on plant identification and classification, but students also will acquire skills that would serve them in any number of careers dealing with natural resource management.
Required equipment (all available from UConn Co-op)
- notebook for lecture materials
- field notebook (see below)
- pencils
Course Texts
- Rite in the Rain field-flex bound book, No. 374, 4-5/8-inch x 7-1/4-inch
- Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide by L. Newcomb, 1989
- Fern Finder by A. C. Hallowell and B. G. Hallowell, 1981
Grading
- Quizzes 20%
- Field notebook 10%
- Mid-term exam 25%
- Final exam 25%
- Plant collection/preservation project 20%
Tentative schedule: subject to weather!
Day | Lecture | Field | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Week 1 | |||
Mon June 1 | Introduction, Nomenclature, Vegetative Characters | Campus walk | |
Wed June 3 | Vegetative Characters Cont. | Moss Preserve/Tift Pond, Mansfield | |
Fri June 5 | QUIZ 1, Floral Characters & Pollination | Valley Falls Park, Vernon | |
Week 2 | |||
Mon June 8 | UCONN Herbarium | Hillside Environmental Education Park, Storrs | |
Wed June 10 | Fruits & Seed Dispersal | Soapstone Mountain, Somers | |
Fri June 12 | QUIZ 2, Ferns | Webster Fern Garden Tour, Storrs (?) | |
Week 3 | |||
Mon June 15 | MIDTERM EXAM | Merrow Meadow Park, Mansfield | |
Wed June 17 | Sedges, Rushes, Grasses | Fenton River, Storrs | |
Fri June 19 | QUIZ 3, Mounting Specimens | Mansfield Hollow, Mansfield | |
Week 4 | |||
Mon June 22 | Bog Plants | Willington Bog, Willington | |
Wed June 24 | Aquatic Habitats | Bigelow Hollow State Park, Union | |
Fri June 26 | QUIZ 4, Saltmarshes (Chris Field) | Prairie Remnants (James Mickley) | |
Week 5 | |||
Mon June 29 | Hammonassett State Park, Madison | ||
Wed July 1 | FINAL EXAM | Specimen mounting & Collections Due |
Helpful Links
- UConn Plant Database (http://www.hort.uconn.edu/plants/)
- UConn Herbarium (http://bgbaseserver.eeb.uconn.edu/)
- UConn Arboretum Map (http://www.uconnarboretum.uconn.edu/map.php)
- USDA Plants (http://plants.usda.gov/java/)
- New England Wildflower Society (http://www.newenglandwild.org/)
- Go Botany Key (http://gobotany.newenglandwild.org/)
- Botanical Society of America (http://www.botany.org/)
- Invasive Plant Atlas of New England (http://www.eddmaps.org/ipane/)
- Taxonomic Information System (http://www.itis.gov/)
- CT DEEP Threatened Plants (http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2702&q=323482&deepNav_GID=1628)
- CT Botanical Society (http://www.ct-botanical-society.org/)
- iNaturalist (http://www.inaturalist.org)