BBIO413
Ecosystem Processes

ECTS Value: 5 ECTS

Contact Hours: 25

Self Study Hours: 60

Assessment Hours: 40

 

Overall Objectives and Outcomes

This module, together with the other Biology content modules will provide future biology teachers with the knowledge required to teach the topics covered from SEC up to Advanced Level.
The module unit content will include the following topics:

  • Structure of ecosystems
    • Abiotic & biotic components
  • Energy flow in ecosystems
    • Energy and carbon sources in ecosystems
    • Pyramids of biomass, numbers & energy
    • Transfer of energy between trophic levels
  • Climate and biomes
  • Biogeochemical cycles
  • Climate change and its effect on species
  • The ecological niche
    • Fundamental and realized niche
    • Competition, predation, parasitism and mutualism
    • The role of reproductive isolation in speciation:
    • Allopatric, sympatric, parapatric and quantum speciation
  • Ecological succession
  • Local ecosystems – to include examples from each habitat type
    • Terrestrial habitats including disturbed habitats
    • Marine habitats
    • Effect of alien/invasive species including local examples
  • Ecological techniques
    • Capture recapture techniques
    • Random and non-random sampling
    • T-test to compare independent samples
    • Diversity Indices
    • Data analysis using provided data sets

By the end of this module, the learner will be able to:

Competences

  • a)Assess ecosystem processes, including energy flow, nutrient cycling, and the impacts of human activities on biodiversity;
  • b)Develop practical strategies for monitoring and managing ecosystems, incorporating knowledge of biogeochemical cycles, climate change, and ecological succession;
  • c)Interpret field data to support the analysis of ecosystem processes;
  • d)Evaluate population and community dynamics to interpret species interactions and environmental influences;
  • e)Engage with ecological literature to inform decision-making about ecosystem processes and conservation;
  • f)Produce teaching tools and assessments to support student exploration of biogeochemical cycles, ecological succession, and climate change effects;
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Knowledge

  • a)Identify the range of habitats constituting the coastal and marine environment of the Maltese Islands together with their associated biota;
  • b)Describe the basic principles of behavioural, organismal, population, community, ecosystem ecology and global patterns of biodiversity;
  • c)Define key concepts such as biodiversity, energy flow, succession, nutrient cycle within ecosystems, in relation to their contribution to ecosystem sustainability;
  • d)Explain key ecological techniques used for sampling, monitoring, and evaluating ecosystems;
  • e)Analyse the use of statistical tools in applied ecology, including the interpretation of population and community-level data;
  • f)Describe major biogeochemical cycles (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus) and evaluate their role in sustaining ecosystems;
  • g)Evaluate the effects of climate change on biodiversity and ecosystems;
  • h)Differentiate between the teaching and assessment methods for concepts related to nutrient cycling, ecosystem stability, and species interactions.
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Skills

  • a)Design field investigations to investigate energy flow, nutrient cycling, and biogeochemical processes in ecosystems, using appropriate data collection tools;
  • b)Apply biodiversity indices and the t-test to assess ecosystem health and processes;
  • c)Use models and simulations to predict ecological responses to environmental change;
  • d)Develop management and conservation measures to assess biodiversity and ecosystem needs;
  • e)Prepare diagrams and maps to visualise ecosystem structure and function;
  • f)Design interactive resources to develop student understanding of dynamic ecosystem processes.
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Assessment Methods

This module will be assessed through: Fieldwork Report and Presentation

Suggested Readings

Core Reading List

  1. Begon, M., Howarth, R.W. and Townsend, C.R. (2014). Essentials of Ecology. 4th edition. Wiley.

Supplementary Reading List

  1. Agius Darmanin, S., Vella, N., & Vella, A. (2016). Genetic, morphometric and meristic analyses of first Monrovia Surgeonfish Acanthurus monroviae (Steindachner, 1876) specimens recorded in Maltese waters (Central Mediterranean). Cybium: International Journal of Ichthyology, 40(4), 338–340.
  2. Schembri, P. J., Barbara, J., Deidun, A., Lanfranco, E., & Lanfranco, S. (2015). It was only a matter of time: occurrence of Caulerpa taxifolia (Vahl) C. Agardh var. distichophylla (Sonder) Verlaque, Huisman and Procaccini in the Maltese Islands (Chlorophyta, Ulvophyceae, Caulerpaceae). BioInvasions Records, 4(1), 9–16.
  3. Vella, A., Vella, N., & Agius Darmanin, S. (2016). The first record of the African Sergeant, Abudefduf hoefleri (Perciformes: Pomacentridae), in the Mediterranean Sea. Marine Biodiversity Records, 9, 15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41200-016-0008-7
  4. Vella, N., Vella, A., & Agius Darmanin, S. (2016). Morphological and genetic analyses of the first record of the Niger Hind, Cephalopholis nigri (Perciformes: Serranidae), in the Mediterranean Sea and of the African Hind, Cephalopholis taeniops, in Malta. Marine Biodiversity Records, 9(99), 1–5.
  1. Vella, N., Vella, A., & Mifsud, C. M. (2017). First Scientific Records of the Invasive Red Swamp Crayfish, Procambarus clarkii (Girard, 1852) (Crustacea: Cambaridae) in Malta, a Threat to Fragile Freshwater Habitats. Natural and Engineering Sciences, 2(2), 58–66. https://doi.org/10.28978/nesciences.328931

Weber, H. C., Kendzior, B. (2006) Flora of the Maltese Islands: A Field Guide . Margraf.

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