ENTOM 2500

Biological Diversity of the Sonoran Desert

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2018-2019.

The Sonoran Desert hosts an impressive array of biological diversity. This course will explore this diversity, with a focus on the insect fauna and the plants they utilize. Specific topics will include collection methods, insect biodiversity, biogeography, and Sonoran Desert plant communities. A one-week field trip will take place over spring break. Students will travel to Tucson, visit the Sonoran Desert Museum, and be housed at the Southwest Field Station.

When Offered Spring.

Fees Course fee: $1,000.
Prerequisites/Corequisites Prerequisite: ENTOM 2120.

Comments This course includes a field trip to Tucson, AZ.

• Introduce students to the biodiversity of the desert southwest through a focused examination of insects (bees and flies) and their host plant communities.
• Develop skills in insect natural history observation.
• Formulate hypotheses for individual research projects. Collect ecological, behavioral, and natural history data in the field, Analyze these data to address the hypotheses posed.
• Apply basic statistical methods.
• Explain and present scientific results orally and in writing.
• Interpret, analyze, and discuss scientific literature relevant to desert ecology and plant and insect biodiversity.

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