ZOOL 4408/5408 - Ornithology

Expected learning outcomes: Birds have delighted and fascinated humans throughout recorded history (and presumably before). Texas has more bird species than any other U.S. state, so we will go on several field trips to gain an appreciation for this diversity and to study birds in their natural setting. Students will study the phylogenetic origins, taxonomy, anatomy, physiology, behavior, and ecological importance of this unique, abundant, and widespread class of animals. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to identify locally abundant species by sight and sound, recognize features that allow taxonomic identification to Order (all species worldwide) and Family (local songbirds), understand the unique physical and behavioral traits of birds, and understand the evolutionary linkage of birds to other animals. There are required field trips. Methods for assessing expected learning outcomes: (1) lecture tests, (2) lab exams, (3) student performance on identification exercises in lab and field, (4) pop quizzes, (5) cumulative final lecture exam, (6) change in performance on a standardized test.

2) Recommended lab manual: Proctor, N.S., and P.J. Lynch. 1993. Manual of Ornithology.

3) Required field guide: Dunn, J.L. 2006. National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America (5th ed.). (Other equivalent field guides [e.g. Sibley] may be permitted by the lab T.A.)

4) Binoculars (please feel free to bring your own; there are some in the lab that are available for loan).

The TTU library has many relevant books (including The Birder’s Handbook, The Encyclopedia of Birds, The Encyclopedia of North American Birds, and others) and scientific journals (Auk, Condor, Ibis, Wilson Bulletin, Journal of Field Ornithology). There are also countless websites devoted to birds and ornithology, including the following:

· American Birding Association (geared towards serious birders and listers, but also with lots of general resources on backyard bird feeding, gear, etc.)

· Life of Birds (a superb TV documentary with accompanying book by noted naturalist Sir David Attenborough)

10% on exam III
20% on cumulative final exam – Thursday, April 30, 7:30-10:00 a.m.

Graduate students will have different exams from undergraduates; grad students will be expected to display a more thorough mastery of the subject.

Lab overview: The lab will consist of a general overview of the major taxonomic groups of birds, primarily focusing on those distributed in North America, where you will learn general form and function of anatomical features and identification of birds (in the lab and field) including class, order, family, and standardized common names.

Evaluation: Students’ performance will be evaluated by a total of 6 equally-weighted weekly quizzes on lab specimens (anatomy, taxonomy, and song) reviewed in the week(s) prior and a field identification quiz. No extra credit is available; however there will likely be bonus questions on each weekly quiz.

Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. You are expected attend all labs and the lab section to which you are registered. Missed labs cannot be made up. More than 2 unexcused absences will result in the forfeit of all points associated with the lab. Excused absences include a death in the family, illness, mandatory attendance at a Tech extra-curricular function or other serious instances. To be excused, you must present to your lab instructor documentation from health-care provider, coach, dean, counselor, minister, funeral director, etc. on official letterhead.

If you are unable to attend lab due to an approved excused absence please notify your lab instructor immediately to see if you can attend the other lab section. DO NOT simply show up at a lab section without having made prior arrangements and expect to be accommodated.

Bird specimens: You will be given the opportunity to study birds "in the hand" by using specimens borrowed from The Museum of TTU and from the Teaching Collection. These specimens are unique, fragile, and highly valued. Many have been in the museum collection for 100+ years. Therefore, please handle all specimens with the utmost care and consideration. Follow these guidelines:

-absolutely NO food or drinks are allowed in lab (this includes drinks with resealable tops, and water);

Mishandling of specimens is taken very seriously and will result in the loss of points and a meeting with Dr. McIntyre and/or other faculty.

Other: All newspapers, cell phones, pagers and other electronic devices are to be turned off and put away during lab and on field trips.

Field trips: Approximately half of the semester will be outdoors on field trips at destinations in and around the city of Lubbock. All field trips during your respective lab section are REQUIRED. Please see Dr. McIntyre before the first lab if you require special accommodations. In addition please note the following:

2) Field trips will involve walking on non-paved surfaces and off-trail so wear appropriate footwear. Sandals and flip-flops are not advisable.

3) Field trips will only be cancelled due to inclement weather (e.g., thunderstorms or dust storms).

4) Field trips WILL NOT be cancelled due to cold or hot temperatures. So please dress appropriately, wearing proper shoes and attire that accommodate your particular comfort zone.

5) In order to identify birds in the field you are required to bring YOUR own field guide and binoculars (there are some available for loan in the lab) on all field trips. Individuals need to learn how to ID birds using their own skills and this cannot be accomplished by groups huddling around a single book.

6) Lack of participation in the field will result in losing participation points AND continued disruption or lack of participation will be counted as an unexcused absence with no opportunity to make up points lost. Lack of participation is any activity that prevents you from participating in observing birds or listening to your instructors.

Required text: National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America

2) Peterson Field Guides: A Field Guide to Western Birds AND Peterson Field Guides: A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America

3) The Birder's Handbook: A Field Guide to the Natural History of North American Birds by Paul Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, Darryl Wheye

4) Hawks in Flight: The Flight Identification of North American Migrant Raptors by Clay Sutton, Peter Dunne, David Allen Sibley

5) Manual of Ornithology Avian Structure & Function by Noble S. Proctor & Patrick J. Lynch

Weekend field trips: our optional weekend field trip 27-29 March 2009 was to the Davis Mountains Preserve, a facility maintained by The Nature Conservancy near Ft. Davis, TX. The Davis Mountains are strikingly beautiful and support a very different group of birds than what we normally see around Lubbock, owing to differences in elevation and, hence, habitat. We saw 62 species, either at the preserve, at a picnic area in Ft. Davis along Limpia Creek, or en route:

Turkey Vulture

Gadwall

Mallard

Northern Harrier

Cooper's Hawk

Common Black-hawk

Swainson's Hawk

Zone-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

American Kestrel

Wild Turkey

Rock Dove

Band-tailed Pigeon

Eurasian Collared-dove

White-winged Dove

Mourning Dove

Western Screech-owl

Burrowing Owl

Swift (prob. White-throated)

Black-chinned Hummingbird

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Acorn Woodpecker

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Say's Phoebe

Vermilion Flycatcher

Hutton's Vireo

Western Scrub-jay

raven (Chihuahuan en route, either Chi. or Common at site)

Violet-green Swallow

Barn Swallow

Black-crested Titmouse

Bushtit

White-breasted Nuthatch

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Western Bluebird

Mountain Bluebird

Northern Mockingbird

European Starling

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Grace's Warbler

Green-tailed Towhee

Spotted Towhee

Canyon Towhee

Rufous-crowned Sparrow

Chipping Sparrow

Vesper Sparrow

Black-throated Sparrow

Lark Bunting

Grasshopper Sparrow

Song Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Northern Cardinal

Pyrrhuloxia

Eastern Meadowlark (yes, Eastern--it was calling)

Great-tailed Grackle

House Finch

Pine Siskin

American Goldfinch

House Sparrow

Here are the bird sounds that you are required to know for lab. These are all species common in the Lubbock area (although not all species are present throughout the entire year):

4. Brown-headed Cowbird (example 1 and example 2); HINT: bubbly "glug glug glee"

24. Sandhill Crane guard call (go to this website, scroll down and click on "guard call"); HINT: rattling "karoo"

26. Western Meadowlark; HINT: less structure than E. Meadowlark; sounds a little like R2D2 from Star Wars

Missed assignments: Make-up assignments will be given only in the event of a satisfactory written excuse (e.g. doctor’s note or TTU-sponsored note).

Students with disabilities: Any student who, because of a disability, may require special arrangements in order to meet the course requirements should contact the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary arrangements. Students should present appropriate verification from Student Disability Services. Please note that instructors are not allowed to provide classroom accommodations to a student until appropriate verification from Student Disability Services has been provided. For additional information, you may contact the Student Disability Services office at 335 West Hall or 806-742-2405.

Religious observances: A student who is absent for the observation of a religious holy day shall be allow to take an exam or complete an in‑class assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence if, not later than the 15th day after the 1st day of the semester, the student has notified Dr. McIntyre of each scheduled class during a holy day that the student would be absent.

Academic honesty: Any attempt by a student to present as their own work any work not honestly performed is regarded as a serious offense and renders offenders liable to consequences, including possible suspension from the university. Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, misrepresenting facts, and any act designed to give an unfair academic advantage to a student. A detailed list may be found in the Student Handbook.

Important notes: (1) This course is more than simply “bird appreciation” or bird-watching: it is a rigorous senior- and graduate-level zoology course that will demand a great deal of your time and dedication. You should devote at least as many hours to studying each week as you spend in class each week. (2) Listening is not the same thing as learning: you should be taking detailed notes during both lecture and lab (including labs in the field). (3) All electronic devices (including cell phones and laptops) must be turned off and newspapers put away during class time.

And check out these links for other career options in the environmental sciences:

Day	Date	Topic	Textbook reading (Gill, 3rd ed.)
Th	Jan 8	Introduction: humans’ fascination with birds	pp. xxi-xxvi; additional fun info may be found at this entry from Wikipedia
Tu	Jan 13	Avian characteristics	Chapter 1; additional general info may be found here
Th	Jan 15	Evolutionary origins of birds	Chapter 2; more info on Archaeopteryx may be found here; click here for more on the debate about which reptilian lineage gave rise to birds; additional (pro-theropod) info may be found at the Univ. of California Museum of Paleontology's website
Tu	Jan 20	Avian phylogeny	Chapter 3
Th	Jan 22	Nonpasserines	Table 1-1, p. 12; click here for a primer on avian taxonomy
Tu	Jan 27	Passerines I	Table 1-1, p. 12
Th	Jan 29	Passerines II	Table 1-1, p. 12
Tu	Feb 3	Brain and sensory systems	Chapter 7
Th	Feb 5	Visual and vocal communication	Chapters 8, 12; check out this scientific article about birds seeing in UV
Tu	Feb 10	Adaptations for feeding	Chapter 6
Th	Feb 12	EXAM I	-
Tu	Feb 17	Origins of flight	Pp. 40-41 and Chapter 5; additional info may be found at this website from the BBC and this website from UC-Berkeley
Th	Feb 19	Physics of flight	Chapter 5; additional helpful info on flight (and not just birds) may be found at this website and at this website from UC-Berkeley; and more than you'll ever want to know about Bernoulli's principle may be found here
Tu	Feb 24	Feathers	Chapter 4; additional info may be found at this website from Wikipedia, here (general info), and here (types of feathers)
Th	Feb 26	Other adaptations for flight	Chapter 6
Tu	Mar 3	Migration	Chapter 10; click here for info about North American flyways and here for info about adaptations for migration; additional helpful info may be found at the USGS's Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
Th	Mar 5	Orientation and navigation	Chapter 10
Tu	Mar 10	EXAM II	-
Th	Mar 12	Mating systems	Chapters 12-13
Tu	Mar 17	SPRING BREAK	-
Th	Mar 19	SPRING BREAK	-
Tu	Mar 24	Reproductive physiology	Chapter 14
Th	Mar 26	The egg	Chapter 14; check out this website and this one, both from Canada
Tu	Mar 31	Clutch size	Chapters 14 and 17
Th	Apr 2	Nesting and incubation	Chapter 15
Tu	Apr 7	Raising young	Chapter 16
Th	Apr 9	Brood parasitism	Chapter 13; click here for more info about Brown-headed Cowbirds
Tu	Apr 14	Nest predation	Chapter 15
Th	Apr 16	EXAM III	-
Tu	Apr 21	Birds in peril: endangered and extinct species	Chapter 21; click here for info on the Heath Hen, here for info on the Passenger Pigeon, here for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker (and here for info about its rediscovery in 2004...and subsequent controversy about these sightings)
Th	Apr 23	The future: a silent spring?	Chapter 21; click here for predictions about how birds may respond to climate change in terms of abundance and distribution, and here for more info on range shifts; click here for info on ecosystem consequences of bird declines, and here for how urbanization is changing bird songs
Tu	Apr 28	Bird conservation; evaluations	-
Th	Apr 30	FINAL EXAM 7:30-10:00 a.m.	-

Date	Topic
Jan 7 / 8	No lab
Jan 14 / 15	Introduction / External Anatomy / Avian Orders
Jan 21 / 22	Quiz 1 / Pigeon dissection / Podicipediformes - Anseriformes
Jan 28 / 29	Quiz 2 / Field trip
Feb 4 / 5	Quiz 3 / Galliformes - Strigiformes
Feb 11 / 12	Quiz 4 / Caprimuligiformes – Passeriformes / Bird Song I
Feb 18 / 19	Quiz 5 / Passeriformes continued / Bird Song II
Feb 25 / 26	Quiz 6 / Passeriformes continued
Mar 4 / 5	Field Trip
Mar 11 / 12	Field Trip
Mar 18 / 19	Spring Break
Mar 25 / 26	Field Trip
Apr 1 / 2	Field Trip
Apr 8 / 9	Field Trip
Apr 15 / 16	Field Trip - Quiz 7: Field ID
Apr 22 / 23	Field trip to the TTU Museum