Courses

Courses

A crowd-sourced list of current GGE courses is available. Click here

Spring Quarter 2023


ECL 208. 4 units. Cons Biol Research. Instructor: Marissa Baskett

CRN: 39853

Time: Mondays and Wednesday 10:00 am - 11:20 am; 11:30 am - 11:50 am

Location: Wickson 2124


ECL 212B. 4 units. Environ Policy Evaluatn. Instructor: Michael Springborn

CRN: 62097
Time: Mondays an Wednesday 2:10 pm - 3:00 pm; 3:10 pm - 4:00 pm; TBA
Location: Hoagland 168

 

ECL 214. 3 units. Marine Ecology. Instructors: John Stachowicz and John Durand

CRN: 62967
Time: Thursdays 1:10 pm - 4:00 pm
Location: 1350 Storer

 

ECL 225. 4 units. Terr Field Ecology. Instructor: Richard Karban

CRN: 39856
Time: TBA
Location: Facility Assigned by Instructor

 

ECL 233. 3 units. Comp Methods in Pop Biol. Instructor: Marissa Baskett

CRN: 62101
Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays 10:00 am - 11:50 am
Location: Wickson 2124

 

ECL 290s. Participatory seminars

290s will be listed here as they are announced.

Analysis of Plant Function. 2 units. Instructor: Tom Buckley (tnbuckley@ucdavis.edu)

Description: The objective of this seminar is to develop familiarity with mathematical process-based models commonly used in organismal plant biology, and operational facility in using those models to understand plant functioning in a changing environment. We will derive models of various processes (e.g., photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, water relations, leaf-to-canopy scaling), and learn to interrogate and manipulate those models for general enquiry, hypothesis generation, and simulation. Most of the quarter will focus on analytical work, that is, working with equations by hand. If time permits, during the last few weeks we will learn to use numerical environments such as Excel and R as tools for exploring and simulating mathematical relationships.

Suggested topics

  • Weeks 1-2. Physico-chemical processes (diffusion, advection, phase changes, thermal energy balance, chemical reaction kinetics, mechanics).
  • Week 3. Transport models in plants (H2O and CO2 diffusion, water movement, heat exchange)
  • Week 4. Photosynthesis (FvCB model and predecessors).
  • Week 5. Coupling photosynthesis with mass and energy transport.
  • Week 6. Optimization theory (leaf stomatal conductance).
  • Week 7. Optimization theory (canopy nitrogen distribution; carbon partitioning).
  • Weeks 8-10. Numerical explorations.

CRN: 39859
Time: Tuesday 10:00 am - Noon
Location: PES 2004


Vernal Pool Ecology. 1 unit. Instructors: Andrea Schreier (amdrauch@ucdavis.edu) and Anderson Tate (atate@ucdavis.edu) ); if you are interested in this course, please reach out to Andrea or Anderson so we can settle on a date/time by the end of winter quarter.

Description: In this course, students survey the current literature to learn about vernal pool ecology, types, functions, and current scientific techniques used to monitor and assess ephemeral pools across different landscapes. The course will be student-led and discussion-focused. Each week a student will be responsible for briefly presenting on and leading a discussion about a recent paper related to any aspect of vernal pools ecology.

CRN: 39860
Time: Wednesday 1-2pm
Location: Meyer Hall room 2219
 

Ecosystem Ecology, 2 credits. Instructors: Troy Magney (tmagney@ucdavis.edu) and Lily Klinek

Description: In this course, students will survey foundational and current literature in ecosystem ecology. They will develop an understanding of the physical, chemical and biological processes regulating the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems.The course will be student-led and discussion-focused. Each week a student will be responsible for briefly presenting on and leading a discussion about a paper.

CRN: 39861
Time: Tuesday 2:10pm - 4pm
Location: Plant Reproductive Biology conference room 1111

 

Ecosystem services in interdisciplinary science and decision making. 1 unit. Instructors: Prof Michael Springborn (mspringborn@ucdavis.edu), Catherine Courtier (cacourtier@ucdavis.edu), and Indu Roy (inroychow@ucdavis.edu)

Description: The value of natural resources can be measured using ecosystem services, which provide a bridge between social and ecological systems, and are crucial to human well-being. Biodiversity and nature’s benefits to people underpin almost every aspect of human life whether it’s through the production of food, clean water, or regulation of climate and disease. However biodiversity is being degraded at an unprecedented rate, and as such there is a need to understand how these changes lead to changes in ecosystem services, and subsequently changes in human dimensions outcomes. This knowledge can be used to provide policy-relevant knowledge and to catalyze the implementation of knowledge-based policies at all levels in government, the private sector and society.

The goal of this seminar is to explore and exchange ideas related to current literature on ecosystem service science and practice. A second focus of this seminar is to provide a space for anyone who is interested to develop ideas for ecosystem service related projects and elaborate these into funding proposals. Potential topics of discussion include: the intersection of ecosystem services and environmental justice; quantitative and qualitative methods of evaluation; emerging topics and concepts. Each week, we will read two papers in preparation for a discussion led by seminar participants.

CRN: 39862
Time: Wednesdays 9:00-10:00 am
Location: TBA
Course Info: Doc

Aquatic-Terrestrial Interface Ecology: Managing in the Mosaic. 1 unit. Instructors: Robert Lusardi (ralusardi@ucdavis.edu), Brandi Goss (begoss@ucdavis.edu) , and Kelly Goedde-Matthews (kgoeddem@ucdavis.edu)

Description: In this course, students will consider the connectivity between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, what the implications of this connectivity are for aquatic management, and how to incorporate this connectivity into management frameworks. The course will be student-led and discussion-focused. Each week a student will be responsible for briefly presenting on and leading a discussion about a recent paper related to a progression of topics around ecosystem connectivity, land-use, and aquatic management.

CRN: 39863
Time: TBD - we will poll enrollees prior to the end of winter quarter similar to the vernal pool 290 to determine an appropriate time
Location: TBD depending on class time

Course Info: Doc

 

Community and Citizen Science in Conservation. 2 units. Instructors: Todd Harwell (taharwell@ucdavis.edu), Ryan Meyer (rmmeyer@ucdavis.edu), and Heidi Lyn Ballard (hballard@ucdavis.edu)

Description: This 2-unit course will involve weekly discussion and exploration of community and citizen science (CCS) approaches and applications broadly related to conservation. With an emphasis on recent academic literature, each session will focus on a different topic such as equity and justice, project design and implementation, participant and conservation benefits. Other topics will be identified and explored based on student interest, and students will also have an opportunity to develop ideas for CCS projects within their own research.

Students who complete the course will become eligible to apply for the CCS in Conservation Fellowship, offered annually by the UC Davis Center for Community and Citizen Science. Learn more.

CRN: 39864
Time: Wednesdays 1:10 to 2:40pm
Location – Conference Room, 1460 Drew Ave, Davis, CA 95618

 

Using Biological Collections to Assess the Ecological Impacts of Global Change. 1 unit. Instructors: Emily Meineke (emeineke@ucdavis.edu) and Zoe Wood (zmwood@ucdavis.edu)

Description: Natural history collections and museum specimens are vast repositories of biodiversity data that encompass a considerable amount of ecological power. As a group, we will examine novel approaches and contemporary studies that incorporate the use of natural history collections, physical and/or digitized museum specimens, and biodiversity data. Topics may include but are not limited to phenology and addressing biases, functional traits, using museum specimens to estimate populations and abundance, species interactions, community science, the use of computer vision and AI, and the extended specimen. This will be primarily an in-person, paper discussion-based seminar, with a museum visit component.

CRN: 39865
Time: Tuesdays 1-3pm; this 1-unit seminar will meet for 2 hours each week for Weeks 1-5 with no meetings during Weeks 6-10.
Location: TBD; interested students please email Zoe Wood (zmwood@ucdavis.edu) so we can arrange
a course meeting time.
Course info: Doc


Recent advancements in Ecosystem-Based Fisheries Management. 1 unit. Instructors: Mikaela Provost (mmprovost@ucdavis.edu); Marissa Baskett; James Sanchirico; Jack Buckner (jhbuckner@ucdavis.edu); Sophia Simon (sosimon@ucdavis.edu

Description: Ecosystem based fisheries management (EBFM) has been increasingly implemented over the past several decades but has also faced ongoing challenges in realizing the goals of accounting for the many complexities of marine systems in fisheries decision-making. Broadly, EBFM includes four basic topics: (1) species interactions, (2) environmental variability, (3) human dimensions, and (4) uncertainty and adaptive management. In this course, students will lead discussions on recent developments in each of these topics, followed by a synthesis at the end of the course. We aim to understand how fisheries management can move from single-species to EBFM (i.e., which components are most important, and when), and ask if (or what type of) EBFM is achievable.

CRN: 63090
Time: Fridays 1:40-3:00pm
Location: Wickson 2120B
Course info: Doc

 

Winter Quarter 2023

 

ECL 200BN. 5 units. Principles of Ecology. Instructor: Marcel Holyoak 

Time: Mondays and Wednesdays from 10:00-11:50am

Section A01: Wednesdays, 12:10-1pm; CRN 20984

Section A02: Wednesdays, 1:10-2pm; CRN 20985

Section A03: Wednesdays, 3:10-4pm; CRN 20986

Location: Olson 105 (MW lecture); Wickson 2120B (Wednesday discussions)

Note: this course is restricted to graduate students only.

 

ECL 231. 3 units. Math Method Pop Bio. Instructor: Sebastian Schreiber.

CRN: 20990
Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:30-11:50am
Location: Giedt 1006
Note: cross-listed with PBG 231

 

ECL 243. 4 units. Ecological Genomics. Instructors: Andrew Whitehead and Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra.

CRN: 20991
Time: Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:40-5pm
Location: Storer 1344

 

ECL 271. 1 unit. Ecology Research. Instructor: Jennifer Funk.

CRN: 45377
Time: Thursdays from 3:10-4pm
Location: PES 2005
Note: cross-listed with PBG 271

 

ECL 296. 1 unit. E&E Seminar Series. Instructor: Jennifer Funk.

CRN: 21004
Time: Thursdays from 4:10-5:30pm
Location: Wellman 126
Note: cross-listed with PBG 292

 

ECL 290s. Participatory seminars

290s will be listed here as they are announced.

Topics in Host-Microbial Ecology. 1 unit. Instructors: Prof. Anya Brown (anybrown@ucdavis.edu), Shelby Penn (spenn@ucdavis.edu), and Karolina Zabinksi (clzabinski@ucdavis.edu)

Description: a seminar on microbial ecology, focused on host-microbial systems. The seminar will be discussion focused, and we will discuss papers surrounding hosts and their microbiome.  The goals of the course will be to gain an appreciation for methods, ideas, and concepts in host-microbial systems. Discussion leaders will choose one (or more) papers and lead discussions on the topic.

CRN: 20995

Time: Thursdays 1:40 pm - 3:00 pm

Location: 1347 Storer Hall / Zoom; please contact the instructors  if you have any questions
 

Principles and Methods of Phylogenetic Systematics. 2 units. Instructors: Prof. Daniel Potter (dpotter@ucdavis.edu), Reed Kenny (rjkenny@ucdavis.edu), Will McMahan (wtmcmahan@ucdavis.edu)

Description: In this course we will explore current topics in the principles and methods of phylogenetics in a participatory seminar format. The goal is to give students a good grounding in the most current methodologies in phylogenetics as well as the core principles upon which these are based. Each week, 1-2 students will lead a discussion of a specific topic, focusing on a particular method and/or concept. For each meeting, assigned readings will include at least one review paper or book chapter providing background and introductory information plus at least one recent paper demonstrating empirical applications of the concept or method.  

CRN: 20996

Time: Mondays 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Location: 3053 Wickson

Course info: Doc
 

Science Translation and Boundary Spanning in Ecology. 1 unit. Instructors: Prof. Hugh Safford (hdsafford@ucdavis.edu) and Saba Saberi (sjsaberi@ucdavis.edu)

This seminar will explore the role of boundary spanners in developing and delivering translational ecology. The 10 seminar meetings will be evenly split between guest speakers from important boundary-spanning organizations located in central California (e.g., Point Blue Conservation Science, USDA Climate Hub, UC Cooperative Extension, California Fire Science Consortium, US Forest Service Region 5 Ecology Program) and presentations by seminar participants.  

CRN: 20997

Time: Thursdays 2:10 - 3:00 pm

Location: Wickson 2120B

Course Info: Doc 1, Doc 2

 

Wetland Ecology and Management. 1 unit. Instructors: Dr. John Durand (jrdurand@ucdavis.edu) and John Veon (jtveon@ucdavis.edu)

This course will cover longstanding ecological theory in wetlands and how those theories play an important role in current wetland management techniques. The goal of this course is for students to gain a better understanding of wetland systems, how they function, and how function can be/is manipulated by agencies to better conserve wetlands. This course will be discussion focused. Each week, a student(s) will choose one or more papers that tie ecological theory to applied management practices within wetlands and lead a discussion on that topic.

CRN: 20998

Time: Tuesday, 3:10 - 4:00 pm

Location: Center for Watershed Sciences 1105F

 

Fall Quarter 2022

 

ECL 200AN. 5 units. Principles of Ecology. Instructor: Fernanda Valdovinos 

Time: Mondays and Wednesdays from 10:00-11:50am

Section A01: Thursdays, 10:00-10:50am; CRN 29634

Section A02: Thursdays, 11:00-11:50am; CRN 29635

Section A03: Thursdays, 12:10-1:00pm; CRN 29636

Location: Wellman 115 (MW lecture); Wickson 2120B (Thursday discussions)

Note: this course is restricted to graduate students only.

ECL 245. Climate Change & Water. Instructors: Erwan Monier and Mark Lubell.

CRN: 29639

Time: Mondays and Wednesdays from 11:30am-1:00pm

Location: Hoagland 124

Note: cross-listed with HYD 245 and ATM 245

ECL 296. 1 unit. E&E Seminar Series. Instructor Jennifer Funk

CRN: 29714

Time: Thursdays at 4:10-5:30pm.

Location: Hunt 100

Speaker schedule: TBD

Note: cross-listed with PBG 292

ECL 298. 2 units. R Davis. Instructor: Tyler Scott

CRN: contact instructor for permission to add

Time: Thursdays, 1:10-3:00pm

Location: Shields 360

Note: this course is restricted to GGE and EPM graduate students only. Others may add with instructor permission.

ECL 298. 2 units. Casual Chain. Instructor: James Sanchirico

CRN: 29724

Time: Thursdays, 1:10-3:00pm

Location: Wickson 2120B

ECL 298. 3 units. Bayesian Models: A Statistical Primer. Instructor: Xiaoli Dong

CRN: 29725

Time: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 10:30-11:50am

Location: Wickson 2120J

ECL 298. 1 unit. NSF GRFP Grant Writing. Instructor: Steve Sadro

CRN: contact instructor

Time: meet once a week for two hours over five weeks, starting Sept. 12

Location: contact instructor

Note: Interested students must sign up on the google sheet if you plan to take the course.

ECL 298. 3 units. Environmental Data Science. Instructor: Troy Magney

CRN: 29727

Time: Mondays & Wednesdays, 2:10-4pm

Location: Hoagland 108

 

ECL 290s. Participatory seminars

290s will be listed here as they are announced.

Biology and Ecology of Plant Reproduction. 1 unit. Instructors: Susan Harrison and Rachel Vannette, with Gillian Bergmann.

Description: The ability to reproduce is an ultimate fitness measure of all organisms, and reproductive strategies are a product of sexual selection, the abiotic environment, energetic tradeoffs and species interactions. Plants have evolved an array of said strategies, both sexual and asexual, that have impacted plant dispersal mechanisms, disturbance responses, and co-evolution with symbiotic animals and microbes. This course will examine the different strategies plants use to reproduce, their evolution, how they interact with other organisms and their ultimate consequences for ecological communities. Emphasis will be placed on seed plants, particularly angiosperms, and discussions will be framed within the contexts of symbioses and global change.

CRN: 29642

Time: Mondays, 2:10-3pm

Location: Wickson 2120B

Revolutionary Organizing for Climate Solution Implementation. 2 units. Instructor: Anthony Wexler.

Description: Due to the California drought, 500,000 acres of land to the west of Fresno are likely to lose their water rights and be fallowed. Placing 200,000 acres of solar farm on this land would reduce dust emissions and generate enough power to eliminate all fossil fuel combustion used for making electricity in the state. In this ECL 290 class, students will learn to advocate from the position that climate science is real, that the unprecedented disasters taking place around us cannot be allowed to worsen, and that those who choose to can personally step up to implement transformative new solutions in response. Students will research and conduct direct outreach to build support in targeted legislative districts for the historic California Solar Farm Green Bond bill. Students will learn how to carry out direct outreach to focus on (a) the Senate and Assembly districts of the chairs and leaders of the leading environmental committees in the state legislature, (b) key local constituent groups in these districts to solicit comments and enlist their support, and (c) state wide organizations and industry groups such as the solar industry and agriculture trade groups. 

CRN: 29643

Time: Wednesdays, 2:10-4pm

Location: Wellman 205

Animal Space Use and Movement Ecology. 1 unit. Instructors: Danny Karp and Justine Smith, with Cody Pham and Gabe Reyes.

Description: Analyses of animal space use and movement focus on elucidating how organisms move in response to environmental conditions. The goals of this graduate seminar are to 1) familiarize participants with many of the tools necessary to conduct movement analyses in R and 2) help participants develop a sense of the diverse applications of movement analyses. The course will follow a flipped-classroom structure. Before each meeting, participants will complete R tutorials (either in groups or alone) that include theoretical background on the analysis, worked examples, and some independent analyses. Class meetings will focus both on troubleshooting problems encountered whilst executing tutorial and on discussing potential applications each type of analysis. To facilitate discussion, 1-2 participant(s) will present and lead a discussion on an application of the analyses highlighted in the corresponding tutorial for the week.

CRN: 29644

Time: Wednesdays, 2:10-3pm

Location: Academic Surge 1064

Urban Ecology: Plants and Animals. 1 unit. Instructor: Matthew Gilbert, with Sage Madden and Mickie Tang.

Description: Urbanization is a critical and growing source of environmental change. This seminar will review current literature related to the ecology of urban plants and animals, including cities as social-ecological systems, responses of plants and animals to the built environment, and species interactions in cities. Each week, we will read two papers in preparation for a discussion led by seminar participants.

CRN: 29645

Time: Tuesdays, 2:10-3pm

Location: PES 2004

Scientific Filmmaking Through Short Films. 1 unit. Instructor: Eric Sanford.

Description: This graduate seminar will address how to communicate research to a general audience through the production of accessible and engaging short films. We will meet once per week during Fall Quarter. Our discussions will focus on (1) science communication and storytelling, (2) the elements of an interesting and accessible scientific film, (3) basic filmmaking techniques, (4) how to conduct interviews, and (5) and film editing using iMovie. Each participant will produce a  short film (~3 minutes), incorporating feedback and critiques from the group. Filmmaker Grant Thompson will be collaborating on course instruction and will provide his professional perspective and insights. We will premiere our final films at two public film festivals, one in Bodega Bay and one in Davis, at the end of the quarter, and these videos will subsequently be shared with the general public via UC Davis websites.

CRN: 29646

Time: TBD - see instructor

Location: TBD - see instructor 

 

Other fall offerings:

WFC 298, Marine Science and Policy, Instructor: Nann Fangue (Sustainable Oceans course offering)