ECTS credits ECTS credits: 3
ECTS Hours Rules/Memories Hours of tutorials: 3 Expository Class: 9 Interactive Classroom: 12 Total: 24
Use languages Spanish, Galician
Type: Ordinary subject Master’s Degree RD 1393/2007 - 822/2021
Departments: Botany, Functional Biology
Areas: Botany, Ecology
Center Higher Polytechnic Engineering School
Call: First Semester
Teaching: With teaching
Enrolment: Enrollable
To know the main ecophysiological methods for the study of forest ecosystem behavior to face climate change
To achieve the main capabilities to understand the response of forest across time, as well as their potential future behavior
The contents of the course, as specified in the verified programme of the degree, are:
Ecophysiology: Interception of solar radiation and rainfall, leaf area index, specific leaf area, gross and net primary production
Dendrochronology: study of tree rings. Biological methods and analysis methodology. Main applications and contribution to the study of climate change.
EXPOSITORY ACTIVITIES
Introduction to Plant Ecophysiology. Plant environment. Solar radiation. Plant microclimate.
Carbon use and organic matter production. Cell carbon metabolism. Gas exchange in plants. Carbon budget in plants and forest stands. Energy conversion. Atmospheric CO2 enrichment.
Water relations. Water in plant cells. Water relations in a plant as a whole. Water relations for different plant types. Water relations in plant communities.
Characterization of morphological and anatomical traits of functional relevance: quantification and ecological meaning. Tree rings. Seasonal wood formation. Techniques for the study and modeling of cambial activity.
Tree-ring analysis for global change studies. Dendrochronology: concept and biological principles. Tree responses to climate and other environmental factors. Annual and intra-annual growth variables.
Tree-ring dating: the principle of crossdating. Tree-ring chronology building: standardization and quality assessment. Identification of signals of interest.
Applications of dendrochronological techniques. Climate reconstruction. Assessment of forest dynamics through time. Other applications of dendrochronology.
INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES
Analysis of photosynthetic pigments
Assessment of leaf area index and specific leaf area
Solving of ecophysiological problems
Tree-ring chronology building
Tree-ring modeling for the study of climate and forest dynamics
Presentation of a practical report
General texts
Lambers, H., Chapin III, F.S. & Pons, T.L. (2008). Plant physiological ecology, 2nd edition, Springer, New York, 604 pp.
Landsberg, J., Sands, P. (2011). Physiological ecology of forest production: principles, processes and models . Academic Press, London.
Larcher, W. (1977). Ecofisiología vegetal. Omega, Barcelona, 305 pp.
Larcher, W. (1995). Physiological plant ecology: ecophysiology and stress physiology of funtional groups, 3rd edition, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 506 pp.
Fritts, H.C. (2001). Tree rings and climate. Blackburn Press, 2nd edition. Caldwell, New Jersey. 567 pp.
Schweingruber, F.H. (1996). Tree rings and environment. Dendroecology. Paul Haupt, Berne, 609 pp.
Schweingruber, F.H., Börner, A. & Schulze, E.D. (2006). Atlas of woody plant stems. Evolution, structure, and environmental modifications. Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, 229 pp.
Speer, J.H. (2010). Fundamentals of tree-ring research. The University of Arizona Press, Tucson. 368 pp.
Complementary texts
Fitter, A.H., Hay, R.K.M. (2002). Environmental physiology of plants.3rd ed. Academic Press, San Diego, 367 pp.
Kozlowski, T.T., Kramer, P.J. & Pallardy, S.G. (1991). The physiological ecology of woody plants, Academic Press, San Diego, 657 pp.
Landsberg, J.J. & Gower, S.T. (1997). Applications of physiological ecology to forest management, Academic Press, San Diego. 354 pp.
Nobel, P.S. (2009). Physicochemical and Environmental Plant Physiology. 4th ed. Academic Press, 582 pp.
Schweingruber, F.H. (2012). Trees and wood in dendrochronology. Morphological, anatomical, and tree-ring analytical characteristics of trees frequently used in dendrochronology. Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, 409 pp.
Vaganov, E.A., Hughes, M.K. & Shashkin, A.V. (2006). Growth dynamics of conifer tree rings. Images of past and future environments. Springer, Berlin-Heidelberg, 354 pp.
Electronic resources will be available along the course.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will:
COM6-05: Understand the main ecophysiological and dendrochronological methods used to study and predict the impact of global change on forest ecosystems.
In addition, they will be able to:
HAM6-05: Make predictions about the impact of global change on forest ecosystems.
This course will contribute to the development of the following specialization competence:
CEM6-01: Ability to develop growth and production models for forest systems and implement them in computer-based simulators for predictive purposes.
Expository lessons will be used to explain the main theoretical concepts (COM6-05), by means of master classes, supported by presentation or other electronic resources (CEM6-01). Practices will be used to teach the main lab techniques for ecophysiological and dendrochronological studies, as well as statistic and computer tools for the application of some of the study models (HAM6-05, CEM6-01). Students will be required to work on the results obtained during the practices, to apply the theoretical concepts taught, and to compile a report (individual or in groups) of the work carried out (HAM6-05, CEM6-01).
The information provided during the lectures will be available in the Online Campus, together with complementary information of interest not detailed in the lessons (COM6-05). Activity schedule and qualification will also be available online, as well as any other incidence of interest.
Student’s attendance and active participation will also be assessed.
Attendance and active participation in contact activities (10%). Competences COM6-05, HAM6-05 & CEM6-01.
Written tests (50%). Competences COM6-05, HAM6-05 & CEM6-01.
Elaboration and/or presentation of student’s reports (40%). Competences COM6-05, HAM6-05 & CEM6-01.
Passing written test and delivery of reports are requirements for the whole subject.
Students who will be granted a waiver for attendance by the Degree Committee, in accordance with the ‘USC's Regulations on Class Attendance for Official Undergraduate and Master’s Degrees’, should note that attending interactive activities is essential in order to pass the course. In this case, the evaluation of expository activities will be based solely on the final exam, which will account for 55 % of the final qualification while interactive activities will be assessed following the same procedure as for the rest of the students, and the assessment of attendance and active participation will only refer to these activities.
For the second opportunity, students must deliver pending tasks, and pass the final tests, in the same way as for the first opportunity.
In the case of fraudulent tests or exercises, the present regulation at the USC for academic assessment and qualifications will be applied.
Time required for study and individual work can be highly variable according to student’s abilities. As a rule, one contact hour will require 2-3 hours of study time and individual work.
We highly recommend to regularly work on the subject, and use the recommend literature, at least the basic one, as well as the proposed electronic resources, especially the Online Campus (USC Virtual). The attendance to office hours for doubt clearance is highly advisable.
This course will be discontinued in the academic year 2025/26. No contact teaching activities will be held, but students are entitled to assessment, which will follow the system outlined below:
* A written exam accounting for 100% of the final qualification.
Ruben Villares Pazos
Coordinador/a- Department
- Functional Biology
- Area
- Ecology
- ruben.villares [at] usc.es
- Category
- Professor: Temporary PhD professor
Ignacio Garcia Gonzalez
- Department
- Botany
- Area
- Botany
- ignacio.garcia [at] usc.es
- Category
- Professor: University Lecturer
| Monday | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 11:00-12:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |
| 12:00-13:00 | Grupo /CLIL_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |
| Tuesday | |||
| 09:00-10:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |
| 10:00-11:00 | Grupo /CLIL_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |
| Thursday | |||
| 11:00-12:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |
| 12:00-13:00 | Grupo /CLIL_01 | Spanish | Classroom 5 (Lecture room 2) |