BIOL 2060 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Scientific Method
3 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Introduction to Ecology
January 4th, 2016
History of Ecology:
• Plato (~428–347 BC) - Foundations of Natural Philosophy & Science
• Aristotle (384–322 BC) - History of Animals - History of Plants - Classification of living
things
• Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) - “Naturalis Historia”, Zoology, Botany
• 18th century: Natural history important cultural occupation
o Carl Linnaeua (1707-1778)
▪ Father of modern taxonomy
▪ Classification of Species – “Systema Naturae” (1735)
• 19th century: “Harmony & Balance in Nature” replaced by Natural Selection & Struggle
for Existence
o Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
▪ Father of modern ecology
▪ “The Voyage of the Beagle” (1839)
▪ “On the Origin of Species” (1859)
• 20th century: Ecology was established as a science
o understanding problems of populations and communities
▪ theoretical
▪ quantitative
▪ applied
• 1960s: Public awareness of environmental degradation
o problems & solutions
• 21st century: Century of the environment
o biodiversity protection
o ecosystem functions & services
o global issues
▪ climate change
▪ ocean degradation
Levels of Organization:
• Community – ex. How does a competing species alter bison grazing behaviour?
o Community Ecology
• Populations – ex. What factors control population growth rates?
o Population Ecology
• Individuals – ex. How do plants or animals regulate their internal water balance?
o Physiological Ecology
o Behavioural Ecology
• Biosphere
• Region
• Landscape
• Ecosystem Ecosystem Ecology: biotic & abiotic environments
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
