Instructors
---Roberta Mason-Gamer, SEL 1008, 312-996-4537, robie@uic.edu
Office Hours MW 1:00 - 2:00, in SEL 1008

---Jun Wen, Field Museum, 312-665-7853, wen@fieldmuseum.org
Office Hours M 1:00 - 2:00, in SEL 1010

Time and Place
---Lecture, Monday and Wednesday 10:00–10:50, SEL 3101
---Lab, Monday and Wednesday 11:00–12:40, SEL 3101
---Jump to course schedule
---Download a copy of the syllabus (pdf format)

Textbooks 
1. Plant Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach, 2nd ed.  W. S. Judd, C. S. Campbell, E. A. Kellogg, P. F. Stevens, M. J. Donoghue
2. A Primer of Conservation Biology, 2nd ed.  R. B. Primack

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Objectives
The objective of the course is to for you to acquire an understanding of the basic principles underlying the field of conservation biology, and combine it with an appreciation of the diversity of plants around us.  We will combine lecture material on conservation biology, plant systematics, and plant evolution with hands-on studies of a selection of temperate plant families.

Web Resources
In addition to the illustrations in your book and cd and the material in lab, you will find it useful to look at additional pictures of plants.  Here are a few useful sites we think you will like a lot:
---Digital Flowers - used in the Systematics of Flowering Plants course at UI Urbana-Champaign.  Very useful and well-organized.
---Land Plants Online - from Southern Illinois University.  Phylogenetically organized pictures and information on all land plants.
---Plant Families from The University of Hawaii at Manoa.  Some of the most beautiful plant photographs online.

Other valuable web resources we like:
---Flowering Plant Gateway - From Texas A&M University.  For each plant family, find an extensive collection of relevant links.
---Internet Directory of Botany - Hundreds of links related to all aspects of botany, alphabetically arranged.
---Biology Links: Evolution - Lots of evolution-related links, arranged by category.
---Tree of Life Web Project - Explore life from a phylogenetic perspective.

Follow up on some lecture topics:
---Links to some Conservation-Related Sites (Lectures 1 and 2)
---More about Linnaeus from the Museum of Paleontology at the University of California, Berkeley
---An introduction to Pollination Adaptations, by Ross E. Koning at Eastern Connecticut State University
---Review Plant Tissues and Cell Types on this site at McGraw-Hill.  Works best with Internet Explorer.


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Date	Lecture	Reading	Lab	Reading	Who?
Jan. 12	Biodiversity-Biological Concerns	PCB Ch. 1	Lab Orientation		JW
Jan. 14	Biodiversity-Economic and Political Concerns	PCB Ch. 1	Terminology-Vegetative Features I	PS Ch. 4	JW
Jan. 19	Dr. Martin Luther King Day-No Classes
Jan. 21	Characterizing Plant Diversity-What is Phylogeny	PS Ch. 1, 2	Terminology-Vegetative Features II	PS Ch. 4	RJMG
Jan. 26	Phylogeny, Classification, and Naming	PS Ch. 2,  Ap. 1	Terminology-Flowers I	PS Ch. 4	RJMG
Jan. 28	History of Plant Classification	PS Ch. 3	Terminology-Flowers II	PS Ch. 4	RJMG
Feb. 2	Characters-Structural and Biochemical	PS Ch. 4	Terminology-Fruits and Inflorescences	PS Ch. 4	RJMG
Feb. 4	Characters-Structural and Biochemical	PS Ch. 4	Introduction to Identification Keys	PS 525-7	RJMG
Feb. 9	Characters-DNA	PS Ch. 5	Plant Identification-Keying		JW
Feb. 11	Exam 1		Creating a Phylogenetic data Set		JW
Feb. 16	Estimating Phylogeny I	PS Ch. 2	Data Analysis I		RJMG
Feb. 18	Estimating Phylogeny II	PS Ch. 2	Data Analysis II		RJMG
Feb. 23	Plant Evolution I - Seed Plants	PS Ch. 7	Gymnosperms I	PS 199-213	JW
Feb. 25	Plant Evolution II - Flowering Plants	PS Ch. 7	Gymnosperms II	PS 199-213	JW
Mar. 1	Genetic Diversity Within Species I	TBA	Basal Dicots: Magnoliaceae, Lauraceae.  Ethereal Oils	PS 229-236	RJMG
Mar. 3	Genetic Diversity Within Species II	TBA	Monocots: Liliaceae, Iridaceae, Amaryllidaceae	PS 247-250, 254-6, 261-4	RJMG
Mar. 8	Lab Exam - No Lecture Today		Lab Exam 1		RJMG
Mar. 10	Plant Evolution-Species and Speciation I	PS Ch. 6	Monocots: Orchidaceae	PS 264-7	JW
Mar. 15	Plant Evolution-Species and Speciation II	PS Ch. 6	Monocots-Commelinoids: Poaceae, Cyperaceae, Juncaceae	PS 276-8, 284-92	RJMG
Mar. 17	Exam II      Tentative Project Topic Due		Eudicots: Rabunculaceae, Berberidaceae, Caryophyllaceae	PS 297-303, 308-10	JW
Mar. 22	Spring Break-No Classes
Mar. 24	Spring Break-No Classes
Mar. 29	Phylogeny and Biogeography	TBA	Basal Rosids: Hamamelidaceae, Geraniaceae, Crassulaceae	PS 326-8,  330-4, 336-8	JW
Mar. 31	Phylogeny and Conservation      Choice of Article for Report Due	TBA	Eurosids Ia: Violaceae, Salicaceae, Fabaceae	PS 338, 351-2, 354-61	JW
Apr. 5	Tools in Conservation - Collections, Floristics	PS Pp. 530–532	Eurosids Ib: Rosaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Fagaceae	PS 363-372, 380-6	RJMG
Apr. 7	Threats to Biodiversity	PCB Ch. 2	Eurosids II: Brassicaceae, Malvaceae, Sapindaceae	PS 402-9, 410-11, 418-21	RJMG
Apr. 12	Setting Conservation Priorities Among Species	PCB Ch. 3	Basal Asterids: Ericaceae, Polemoniaceae	PS 421, 425-6, 431-3, 436	JW
Apr. 14	Conserving Species	PCB Ch. 3	Euasterids Ia: Solanaceae, Convolvulaceae, Apocynaceae	PS 436-42, 448-51	JW
Apr. 19	Setting Conservation Priorities Among Areas	PCB Ch. 4	Euasterids Ib: Oleaceae, Scrophulariaceae, Lamiaceae	PS 451-5, 458-9, 466-8	RJMG
Apr. 21	***Case Study Project Presentations***		***Case Study Project Presentations***		RJMG
Apr. 26	Conserving Communities and Habitats	PCB Ch. 4	Euasterids II: Apiaceae, Asteraceae, Campanulaceae	PS 470-3, 476-87	JW
Apr. 28	Lab Exam - No Lecture Today		Lab Exam II		JW
May 5	Exam III, 10:30 AM, SEL 3101		Final Exams Week - No Lab

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