Limnology (ECO-286)
Limnology ECO-286, 4 credit units
Postgraduate Program in Ecology. Centro de Estudios Avanzados, IVIC, Venezuela
Professor:
Dr. José V. Montoya C. Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, IVIC
Theoretical-practical course of the postgraduate program in Ecology of the CEA-IVIC. Limnology ECO-286 is offered during September-January semesters.
Two hours of theoretical class and 4 hours of practical (laboratory) per week to be agreed with the students. Two field trips to a lake system and a river system.
OBJETIVE: To provide participants with the conceptual foundations in the area of limnology with emphasis on tropical ecosystems.
SYLLABUS:
1) Introduction to limnology. Types of aquatic ecosystems. Water, physical and chemical characteristics of water.
2) Rivers and Lakes. Classification, origin and geomorphological aspects.
3) Light and heat in water bodies. Stratification of lakes.
4) Water movements. Hydrodynamics, flows, currents, circulation. Mixing in lakes.
5) Physical chemistry of water I. Dissolved gases, inorganic carbon system in water.
6) Physico-chemistry of water II. Major constituents, nutrients, trace elements in aquatic systems.
7) Sources and types of organic matter in rivers and lakes. Decomposition processes. Aquatic decomposers. Bacterioplankton. Metabolism of aquatic ecosystems.
8) Planktonic communities: algae and cyanobacteria. Primary productivity.
9) Planktonic communities: zooplankton. Relationships with fish.
10) Aquatic plants. Distribution and classification.
11) Sediments and microflora. Algae and meiofauna of the benthos.
12) Aquatic macroinvertebrates. Classification. Secondary productivity.
13) Fishes. Fish communities in rivers and lakes.
14) Trophic relationships in rivers and lakes. Microbial trophic webs.
15) Paleolimnology. Organisms used as bioindicators of past conditions.
16) Human impacts on river ecosystems. Global changes. Climate change, habitat degradation, channelization of watercourses, land use, pollution, overexploitation of resources, invasive species.
17) Conservation of aquatic ecosystems. Limnology in Venezuela: challenges and perspectives for the future.
Graduate students ECO-286 (Sep 2013- Jan 2014) in La Mariposa Reservoir, periurban Caracas area
Scrapping rocks to collect periphyton samples in Cata River, Aragua State
Former students in Cumboto River, Aragua State
Identifying and counting of plankton samples on an inverted microscope in the Aquatic Ecology Laboratory at IVIC