2023

Community Biology and Ecosystems

Name: Community Biology and Ecosystems
Code: BIO12350L
3 ECTS
Duration: 15 weeks/78 hours
Scientific Area: Biological Sciences

Teaching languages: Portuguese
Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese, English
Regime de Frequência: Presencial

Sustainable Development Goals

Learning Goals

Analyze and discuss the general principles of communities and ecosystems (terrestrial, freshwater and
oceanic).
Understanding the dynamic nature of the higher levels of biological material and the effect of natural
and/or anthropogenic disturbances.

Contents

Biological communities : general features, definitions and concepts; properties of communities, richness,
diversity and evenness; resilience and stability; models of distribution of abundances; key species in
communities; temporal patterns at different scales (daily, seasonal, annual, historical and geological);
allogenic, autogenic, primary and secondary successions; the climax concept; habitat selection.
Ecosystems: concepts, structure and processes; types of ecosystems and biomes; flows of energy and
matter; primary production; species as modifiers of ecosystems.
Structure and functioning of freshwater and brackish ecosystems. Coastal and marine ecosystems. Ocean
ecosystems.

Teaching Methods

Structured and applied lectures supported by slide presentations.
Evaluation through frequencies regime and final exam.