BIOLOGY OF CORALS Semester [changes, usually A]

Transcription

1 BIOLOGY OF CORALS Semester [changes, usually A] Time: [IN the IUI Eilat 10 days] Instructor: [PhD] [Dan] [Tchernov] & PhD Maoz Fine Office Hours: [NR] Teaching Assistants & Office Hours: Three every year they are usually PhD student in the IUI Course Type (field course Workshop): Course Level ( B.Sc (only year 3) + M.Sc): Pre-Requisites: 2 years complete in any B.Sc program in a university program including college programs. And a basic biochemistry course & photosynthesis course. Course Overview: The course will focus on the understanding of biochemistry and the molecular mechanisms that enable the symbiosis between coral and algae and the responses of the symbiotic system under stress conditions. We will examine the biology of coral under different conditions, while familiarizing ourselves with the variety of methods available for research in this field. Special emphasis will be placed on environmental changes such as global changes and their impact on the physiology of corals. Chronic and acute stress conditions. Coral responses to decrease in ph. Responses to increase or decrease in water temperature.

2 Responses to increased radiation. What mechanisms are operated under conditions of stress. Coral as a complex of organisms. Topics: 1. Coral evolution 2. Coral Taxonomy 3. Symbiosis 4. Corals & photosynthesis 5. Coral calcification 6. Environmental impact (ph, temperature, light and nutrients) on coral biochemistry genetics & ecology 7. The link between corals response to climate change to coral ecology & evolution 8. Hands on training in lab & field methods (molecular, biochemistry, physiology and surveys) At the end of the course students will be able to: [Learning Outcomes] 1. Have up to date basic knowledge in coral biology in a wide variety of aspects 2. Understand the difficulty of this type of studies and will be able to understand up to date papers on the subject. 3. Will have the skill of conducting laboratory measurements in different methodologies while understanding the short cummings and advantages of each. 4. Will acquire the ability of planning experiments in the best possible scenario considering corals special limitations & advantages

3 5. Will have a very wide view of the environmental impact on coral reefs and will the ability to understand all current literature with a very critical way of proofreading them. 6. Improve the ability to give a scientific lecture as well as write a scientific paper via seminar presentation and writing the final essay. 7. Have the ability to visit a reef in situ and understand the basic structure and function of corals with in it. Requirements & Grading: Seminar ( journal club) (15%) Test (40%). The test takes place during the course. Group project report (30%) The report is submitted one month after the end of the course. Personal discussion of results ( 10%) TA s Evaluation (5%)

4 Website: eilat.ac.il/courses/coursedetails.aspx?courseinstanceid=426 Reading List: (for this year s course) all the links available in the web page 1. Ainsworth et al Bay and Palumbi Camp et al Cinner et al Eyal-Shaham et al Ezzat et al Ezzat et al b 8. Ferrigno et al Georgiou et al PNAS 10. Hetzinger et al Hoogenboom et al Howells et al Hume et al Kavousi et al Krueger et al Lecointe et al Palumbi_etal_2014_ Parkinson_2015_SciRep 19. Prasetia et al Rodr-guez-Troncoso_et_al Shapiro et al Sogin et al Zaneveld et al Zhou_et_al Lee et al. 2016

5 Syllabus sample from Nov 2016 Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 19: Opening comments Lunch break + snorkeling gear Lecture: biogeography of corals Lecture: coral evolution Guest lecture :genetic variability in symbiodinium. Tamar Goulet Shopping for food Snorkeling session coral identification. Guest lecture :isotope enrichment (Christine Ferrier-Pages, Monaco Scientific Center). lecture: Circadian clocks in corals (Oren Levi) Lunch Coral identification Lab Projects presentation by the Ta s journal club Snorkeling session ; guided visit to the observatory Lunch break journal club journal club

6 Sunday : 30 Monday :00 Tuesday Wednesday Snorkeling session: Soft corals Lecture nitrogen fixation in corals. lunch break journal club Coral reproduction: Selina Ward, The University of Queensland. Lunch break Lecture: coral response to climate change journal club Snorkeling (guided) in the reserve lunch Restoring paleoclimate from coral records journal club Snorkeling session: competition lunch Lecture: Green Fluorescent Proteins in corals (Dave Gruber) Journal club

7 20:00 Thursday Dinner Snorkeling session: corals and Macroalgae Final test + feedback (IUI) journal club Friday : Projects presentation (initial results) Closing session End