BOT100 Plant Diversity

Credits (ECTS):5

Course responsible:Siri Lie Olsen

Campus / Online:Taught campus Ås

Teaching language:Norsk

Course frequency:Annually

Nominal workload:Lectures: 22 hours. Laboratory work: 20 hours. Field course: 45 hours. Individual study (in addition to the laboratory and field courses): 38 hours.

Teaching and exam period:The course starts in the Spring parallel and has teaching/evaluation in the Spring parallel and the June block.

About this course

The course provides a wide understanding for the phyla in classic botany, as well as basic knowledge of species. In the spring the following taxonomic groups will be included in lectures and lab exercises: cyanobacteria, protists (algae, myxomycetes and oomycetes), fungi, lichens, bryophytes, seedless vascular plants, gymnosperms and angiosperms. Symbiosis, pollination, seed and fruit dispersal, defence and evolution of these traits are also discussed. The five day field course in June focuses on species identification. Here the students will get to know a broad selection of species in different nature types and gain an understanding of how species composition varies across ecological gradients between and within nature types. In total BOT100 gives the students a good foundation for sustainable nature management in the future.

Learning outcome

Knowledge:

After completing the course, students have a basic overview of the diversity of algae, fungi, bryophytes, lichens, seedless vascular plants and higher plants in Norwegian nature. They have knowledge of how the various groups in the plant kingdom are built up, how they multiply and how evolutionary forces have led to adaptations to different ecological conditions.

Skills:

The course emphasizes practical learning via lab work and field courses. The students shall develop a good understanding of what kind of traits that characterize the different groups and plant families. Students will be able to determine higher plants to species using flora and determination tables, as well as to know common Norwegian bryophytes and lichens.

General competence:

The course gives necessary knowledge for further studies in ecology, nature management, plant science and biology.

Learning activities
Lectures provide a theoretical introduction to the relevant organism groups, laboratory exercises provide a practical introduction to the morphology and traits of the different groups, and the field course provides practical knowledge of species identification. In addition, students are expected to study on their own.
Teaching support
Lecture notes, lab exercises, identification keys and extra material are made available on Canvas.
Assessment method
Combined assessment.
Written exam (multiple choice), 3 hours, is arranged in May and counts 2/3. The field course is in June and a floristic exam is given the last evening of the field course. The floristic exam counts 1/3 of the total grade. Both evaluated exams must be passed to pass the course.

Written exam Grading: Letter grades Permitted aids: A1 No calculator, no other aids Floristics test Grading: Letter grades Permitted aids: A1 No calculator, no other aids
Examiner scheme
An external examiner approves the exam questions (multiple choice) and decides the distribution of grades based on the number of correct answers both for the multiple choice and the floristic exam.
Mandatory activity
Laboratory course and field course. For the lab course 8 of 10 reports have to be approved. This is a prerequisite to participate in the compulsory field course.
Teaching hours
Lectures: 22 hours. Laboratory work: 20 hours. Field course: 45 hours.
Admission requirements
Minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway ("generell studiekompetanse")