FW5604: Fisheries Ecology and Management
2008 Syllabus
White Bass (Morone chrysops)
Photo by Konrad Schmidt
FW5604: Fisheries Ecology and Management2008 Syllabus |
|
| General Class Information |
| Texts |
| Course Objectives and Description |
| Format and Evaluation |
| Final Exam |
| Grading |
| Disabilities |
| Scholastic Conduct |
| Course Outline |
| Electronic Interactions |
| FW 5604: Fisheries Ecology and Management, Spring 2008 | 490 Hodson Hall 9:35 - 10:25 A.M. Mon, Wed 8:30- 10:25 A.M. Fri |
| Instructor: Dr. Raymond Newman | Office: 120 Hodson Hall phone: 612-625-5704 email: RNewman@umn.edu Class e-mail: (for assignments, etc.) RMNClass@umn.edu |
| Office Hours: | 10:30 - 11:30 Mon,Wed, Fri Other times by appointment or chance (which is likely - phone first to be sure) |
| TA: None |
|
Course web site: Threaded Discussions may occur at WebCT FW5604 site: |
The main class text, which is also handy for professional purposes, is:
Kohler, C.C. and W. A. Hubert. 1999. Inland fisheries management
in North America. 2nd Ed. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Md.
Required readings from other than the text book will be available as pdfs
online
from the class website (directly or through the library FindIt system).
See the class reading list and schedule online at: http://fwcb.cfans.umn.edu/courses/FW5604/readings.html
Copies of DNR Management plans and a few key books will be on reserve in Entomology,
Fisheries and Wildlife Library, Hodson Hall.
Optional Texts
You should consider the below texts for professional and class purposes:
Monson, B. A. 1992. A primer on limnology. Second Edition.
Water Resources Research Center, University of Minnesota, Public Report
6, St. Paul, MN.
Understanding lake ecology web site:
http://waterontheweb.org/under/lakeecology/index.html
Murphy, B.R. and D. W. Willis. 1996 Fisheries techniques. 2nd ed. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD.
Copies of Kohler and Hubert, Murphy and Willis (discounted price), and Monson
($7) will be available for purchase during the first two weeks of class.
Course Objective & Description:
The course provides a basic coverage of fisheries ecology
and management with an emphasis on human intervention and regulation of use
to achieve management objectives for managed species of interest. We will cover
the tools of fisheries management that may be implemented to achieve specific
objectives and goals and how to assess their efficacy. The course starts with
a general coverage of management approaches and planning, the development of
an information base and the identification of problems. A brief review of applied
limnology and fish ecology will follow. Approaches to manage fishery
populations and habitats will then be covered along with methods to assess management
outcomes. Applications to specific fisheries and habitats will be demonstrated.
A series of homework tasks and problems will be used to develop real-world problem
solving skills; problem sets and readings from the primary literature will be
discussed in periodic sessions. A paper, that outlines and critiques current
management of a specific fisheries resource and proposes new strategies, is
required; the first draft will be graded and returned for final revision.
Please consult the Management Review Paper Assignment handout
for more detail.
The principal format will be lectures; lectures will
occur on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The second hour of Friday
may be used for lecture, discussion of assigned readings or group activities
to spur discussion and analysis. Assigned readings will be essential
and should be read by assigned class date. You will be asked to turn in 2
questions prior to the start of discussion sessions (these will be part of
your class participation grade). Readings will consist of the text,
other review articles and primary literature. As with most university
courses, an average student should expect to spend 2 hours out of class (reading,
completing assignments and studying) for each hour in class.
Grading: The final grade will be based upon the percentage of total points possible
(e.g., 93-100% = A; 90-92.9 = A-, 87-89% = B+; 83-86= B; 70-79 = C, etc...).
| Points are assigned for: | |
| Class participation, paper questions, discussion | = 15 pts. |
| Assignments or problems- 6 @ 10-15 pts. each | = 80 pts. |
| Mid Term Hour exam - 2 @ 75 pts. | = 150 pts. |
| Term paper - first draft =60 pts, final =40 pts. | = 100 pts. |
| Final exam - @ 100 pts | = 100 pts. |
| Total | = 445 pts. |
Final grades will not be lower than specified above, however the instructor may adjust the grades upward based on final scores if needed.
Prior approval is required for acceptance of late assignments and papers
or missed exams.
Based on Fri. class, final is scheduled for 1:30pm-3:30pm Wednesday, May 14 in 490 Hodson. This is the class chosen date.
Alternative date (see me for special permission) based on MW is scheduled for 1:30pm-3:30pm Friday, May 16, in 490 Hodson.
Disabilities and Inclusiveness
An array of topics is covered in the class and students are expected to
be respectful of the opinions and views of others. Enlightened discourse
is encouraged but be aware that not everyone views the world through the
same lens and the key to successful management is to consider and embrace
of diversity of views. Students with disabilities that may hinder their
ability to fully participate in the course or achieve their potential should
contact me and may also wish to contact Disability
Services in 180 Gateway
Building on 200 Oak Street (624-4037) for additional assistance.
Honor Code:
Under an honor system adopted on the St. Paul campus, students
accept responsibility for the supervision of student behavior during examinations
and pledge not to give or receive aid. A student or faculty member who observes
an act of dishonesty may report the incident to the college Honor Case Commission,
a committee of the Student-Faculty Board. Exams are closed book and you
are not to receive or give aid.
Assignments and homework problems must be your original work - identical copies
of assignments from more than one student will be considered inappropriate and
not accepted. Discussion of assignments with classmates and colleagues
is appropriate, but the end result and interpretation must be your individual
and unique product. Students are encouraged to have colleagues or classmates
review written assignments and their management paper for clarity of writing,
logic, and interpretation of content. Revision after this input is an acceptable
practice, but again, the end product must be your work. Information must
be properly attributed and cited; presenting information from other sources without
proper attribution is not acceptable.
Approximate times subject to change
Electronic communications are encouraged. Electronic communication reduces
paper use and thus is less of a drain on resources and waste management systems. All
students at the university have e-mail addresses and Internet access. E-mail/web
can be accessed from home computers with internet access, and most computers
in student labs on campus, including the CFANS Computing Lab in 35 Skok. If
you access the Internet from a service provider other than the University (e.g.,
Comcast, DSL, AOL) you should install VPN (Virtual Private Network) on your system
so you can access full university resources including required readings. Get VPN from: http://www1.umn.edu/adcs/help/vpn/
.
Non-graphical assignments (i.e., the first and second assignments, but not problem
sets) can be turned in by e-mail rather than paper copy and will be considered
handed in at the time of receipt dated by the mailserver. However, these
should be properly formatted, spell checked, etc... If you can mail enclosed
pdf, MS Word, or any Macintosh word processor documents as an enclosure, that
would be preferred. Note however, that I cannot read Office 2007 docx or
xlsx documents. If you use Office 2007 be sure to save in the older doc
or xls formats. Assignments, comments on class info and discussion
should be sent to the address set up for class: RMNClass@umn.edu .
Be sure to put your name on the assignment and also in the email.
Be sure to check for viruses before sending enclosures,
have a clear subject line (see below) and do not send assignments to my personal
(RNewman@umn.edu) account. Antivirus software is available free for
university students at: http://www1.umn.edu/adcs/help/virus/.
Please use and keep current your antivirus software.
Personal requests, late assignment requests or anticipated
class absence can be posted to my personal e-mail address (RNewman@umn.edu):
please use this address only for things that require immediate and personal
attention - all discussion and assignments should go to the RMNClass@umn.edu address
as well as requests that do not need immediate (within a day) attention.
Be sure you have made an appropriate subject line (e.g., Assignment 2, Sally
Smith) - this will flag the appropriate place and action needed for your
message. Proofread and spell check your messages and assignments before sending
them. Be virus-free. You should also give your name (signature) on
your email and be sure to put your name on your assignments.
Web Site:
To further facilitate electronic communication,
we will be using the FW5604 class site which can be found at http://fwcb.cfans.umn.edu/courses/FW5604/default.html I
suggest putting a bookmark at FW 5604.
The class syllabus, schedule
information, reading lists and reading assignments
will be on this site. Announcements are
updated regularly – always check the announcements page – at least
once per week and before assignments are due. Some handouts
will be available in html and as pdf files; assignments
with graphics will be available in pdf. Handouts of copied graphical
material from other sources will not be on the web - sorry. Slideshows
of all lectures will be provided,
as will pdfs of the lecture slideshows in handout format.
These may be updated after class but slideshows from last year will be available
before class. You might
wish to print the pdf and bring to class to take notes.
Slideshow access is password protected. The user and password will be announced
in class.
Check the class site periodically for announcements;
we have also developed a useful set of links including several job search sites
and links to additional reference materials. We have compiled background
information on the life-history and ecology of species of interest and also have
links to DNR reports as well as several larger bibliographies.
A WebCT site may also be created for the class. It will
be primarily used for Threaded Discussions. Access the site (need
your x.500 user number) at vista2.umn.edu. Select
FW5604W. A
few required discussions may be posted there – more details in class.
Note that for WebCT "In this class, our use of technology will sometimes
make students' names and U of M Internet IDs visible within the course website,
but only to other students in the same class. Since we are using a secure, password-protected
course website, this will not increase the risk of identity theft or spamming
for anyone in the class. If you have concerns about the visibility of your Internet
ID, please contact me for further information." (U of MN WebCT Instructions
http://webct.umn.edu/instructors/ferpa.shtml).
Accessing literature:
All primary
literature and discussion papers (except readings from the text and books) will
be available electronically through the website. This eliminates
hard-copies from the library and the need for a reading packet. Access
information is available on the class readings site at: http://fwcb.cfans.umn.edu/courses/FW5604/readings.html .
Note that if you are offcampus, you should use the off-campus findit links which
will require you to enter your x500 user and password to get free access to articles. You
should never have to pay for an article – if you are requested to pay be
sure you have logged in correctly and contact me if the problem persists.
ou should check the readings page weekly (by Monday) for readings for that week. A hard-copy of the readings will not be provided and the reading list may be updated during the semester. If you are accessing the site from an external provided (e.g., Comcast) see the above note about VPN. Required reading should be downloaded, printed and brought to class for reference during discussion sessions. Realize that some journal sites may occasionally be over-loaded. If you cannot access an article, try again a few minutes or several hours later. Let me know by email if you have difficulty downloading an article and I will troubleshoot the problem. More details are on the readings page.
To List of required and supplemental readings
Back to FW5604 homepage.
Comments to: RNewman@umn.edu
Last updated: 23 April 2008
Copyright: 2001-2008 by Ray Newman, University of Minnesota, Department of
Fisheries and Wildlife. All rights reserved. Original content by Ray Newman;
HTML-ized by Maria Rodrigues; M.A.Williams.
The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator
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The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly
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