Families
to study for BIOL 334 - Individualized studyBIOL 334
Plant Taxonomy - Individualized Study
EASTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY
School of Arts and Sciences
Course Syllabus
Number of Course: BIOL 334
Name of Course: Plant Taxonomy
Catalog Description: Principles of plant classification, collection and identification.
Prerequisites: BIOL 101 or BIOL 211 or BOT 201; BOT 202
Class Format: Independent study
Credit Hours: Five
Learning Outcomes:
Students who successfully complete this course should have the following knowledge
and skills:
· The ranks of botanical classification
· How to collect and prepare research quality herbarium specimens
· The diagnostic characteristics of 26 plant families that are well-represented
in North America
· How to use a field manual to identify the family, genus and species of native
plants
Brief Outline of Course Content: Click HERE
Required Texts:
Hitchcock, C. L. and A. Cronquist. 1973. Flora of the Pacific Northwest, University
of Washington Press, 0-295-95273-3; OR the most complete flora available for
the area in which the student lives.
Walters, Dirk R. and David Keil. 1975. Vascular Plant Taxonomy, Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co., 0-7872-2108-2.
Recommended Text:
Harris, J.G. and M..W. Harris. 1994. Plant Identification Terminology: an illustrated glossary; Spring Lake Publishing, Utah.
Field Trips:
Students must arrange their own field experiences. I recommend that students
contact their local chapter of the Oregon Native Plant Society, or similar organizations
in other states. Most western states have native plant societies. Most chapters
sponsor guided field trips to interesting botanical areas. Collecting will not
be allowed on most of these trips, but the botanist guides can provide valuable
information about plant identification. Information about the Oregon Native
Plant Society is included at the end of this packet.
Course Requirements and Means of Assessment:
Students must complete two exams, a field journal, and a plant collection. The
two exams consist of essay questions designed to test the students knowledge
of the basic vocabulary of plant identification, and of the characteristics
of the families of vascular plants common in North America. Requirements for
the plant collection and field journal are described below. Final grades will
be based on the percentage of the total points that the student earns.
Exam I: Chapters 6-10, 40 pts.
Exam II: Chapters 11-20 (except chapter 18), 60 pts.
Field journal and plant Collection: 60 pts.
90-100% = A 80-89% = B 70-79% = C 60-69% = D below 60% = F
Plant Collection:
The plant collection should consist of 30 vascular plants representing at least
20 different families. The specimens must be pressed and dried according to
procedures described in the text. Each specimen must have a label identifying
the state, county, specific location (including township, range and section
or longitude, latitude), associated species, ecological information such as
soil type, abundance, elevation, collector and collection number. These labels
should be typed, but need not be typed on any special paper.
Plant specimens should NOT be glued, taped, or mounted in any way. They should be sent in newsprint with the labels inserted, but not attached. Specimens should be packaged carefully and mailed to the instructor for evaluation. Once at Eastern, they will be mounted on archival paper and will be accessioned into the Eastern Oregon University herbarium.
It is very important that students collect their specimens ethically and responsibly.
Some guidelines follow:
· Specimens should not be collected from private property without permission
from the owner.
· Specimens should never be collected from state parks, campground, national
parks, or other preserve areas.
· Be cautious of other traffic when stopping along roadsides.
· Replace any overturned rocks and fill any holes at collection sites.
· Never collect a specimen unless there are at least 10 other individuals of
the same variety close-by.
For more information about collecting and pressing plants, click HERE.
Field Journal:
Students must keep a record of their field experiences for BIOL 334. Any plants
that are collected must be assigned a collection number at the time of collection.
All information relevant to the date of collection, location, ecology and abundance
of the plant should be recorded in the journal. The relevant pages of the journal
should be duplicated and sent to the instructor instead of mailing the original
journal.
Families
to study for BIOL 334 - Individualized study
Sensitive
plant species list for Wallowa Whitman National Forest
Watch
and reviw species list for Wallowa Whitman National Forest
Syllabus prepared by:
Dr. Karen Antell
Eastern Oregon University
One University Blvd.
La Grande, OR 97850
kantell@eou.edu
page last updated April 2000