Ecology (ECOL)
Department of Integrative Biology, College of Biological Science
This program provides a solid foundation in the principles of ecology, training in both pure and applied aspects of ecology and an introduction to economic, legal and policy issues related to the management of the environment. From the 2nd year on, students increasingly augment the core in ecology and policy with extensive restricted electives choices that allow the student to tailor the program to their interests. The major provides a sound science background for careers in conservation, resource management, ecological consulting, or nature interpretation used in teaching, government, non-government or the private sector; or for further post-graduate training in fundamental ecology, environmental biology and environmental management or policy.
Major Requirements (Honours)
This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Semester 1 | ||
| BIOL*1070 | Discovering Biodiversity | 0.50 |
| CHEM*1040 | General Chemistry I | 0.50 |
| ENVS*1030 | Introduction to Environmental Sciences | 1.00 |
| MATH*1080 | Elements of Calculus I | 0.50 |
| Semester 2 | ||
| BIOL*1090 | Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology | 0.50 |
| CHEM*1050 | General Chemistry II | 0.50 |
| FARE*1040 | Introduction to Environmental Economics, Law and Policy | 1.00 |
| GEOG*1300 | Introduction to the Biophysical Environment | 0.50 |
| Semester 3 | ||
| BIOL*2060 | Ecology | 0.50 |
| PHYS*1080 | Physics for Life Sciences 1 | 0.50 |
| or PHYS*1300 | Fundamentals of Physics | |
| ECON*2100 | Economic Growth and Environmental Quality 2 | 0.50 |
| or FARE*2700 | Survey of Natural Resource Economics | |
| 1.00 electives or restricted electives | 1.00 | |
| Semester 4 | ||
| BIOC*2580 | Introduction to Biochemistry | 0.50 |
| BIOL*2400 | Evolution | 0.50 |
| MBG*2040 | Foundations in Molecular Biology and Genetics | 0.50 |
| STAT*2230 | Biostatistics for Integrative Biology | 0.50 |
| 0.50 electives or restricted electives | 0.50 | |
| Semester 5 | ||
| BIOL*3010 | Laboratory and Field Work in Ecology | 0.50 |
| BOT*3410 | Plant Anatomy 3 | 0.50 |
| or ZOO*2090 | Vertebrate Structure and Function | |
| 1.50 electives or restricted electives | 1.50 | |
| Semester 6 | ||
| BIOL*3060 | Populations, Communities and Ecosystems | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3130 | Conservation Biology | 0.50 |
| 1.50 electives or restricted electives | 1.50 | |
| Semester 7 | ||
| ENVS*4001 | Project in Environmental Sciences | 0.50 |
| 2.00 electives or restricted electives | 2.00 | |
| Semester 8 | ||
| ENVS*4002 | Project in Environmental Sciences | 0.50 |
| 2.00 electives or restricted electives | 2.00 | |
- 1
Students lacking 4U physics or equivalent must take PHYS*1300 Fundamentals of Physics. Students with 4U physics or equivalent must take PHYS*1080 Physics for Life Sciences. PHYS*1130 Physics with Applications may be substituted for PHYS*1080 Physics for Life Sciences.
- 2
GEOG*2210 Environment and Resources may be substituted for ECON*2100 Economic Growth and Environmental Quality or FARE*2700 Survey of Natural Resource Economics and would be taken in semester 4.
- 3
ZOO*2700 Invertebrate Morphology & Evolution may be substituted for BOT*3410 Plant Anatomy or ZOO*2090 Vertebrate Structure and Function and would be taken in semester 6.
Restricted Electives
Students are required to take 6.00 restricted credits as noted below. Of these, at least 1.00 credits must be at the 4000 level.
- One from:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BOT*2100 | Life Strategies of Plants | 0.50 |
| or ZOO*3600 | Comparative Animal Physiology I | |
- A minimum of 0.50 credits from:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL*4150 | Wildlife Conservation and Management | 0.50 |
| CIS*1500 | Introduction to Programming | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2420 | The Earth From Space | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2480 | Mapping and GIS | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3420 | Remote Sensing of the Environment 4 | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3480 | GIS and Spatial Analysis 4 | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4480 | Applied Geomatics 4 | 1.00 |
- 4
Additional prerequisites are required.
- Students in the Ecology Major are required to take an additional 5.00 restricted elective credits from the following lists. Some courses may require other courses from the list as prerequisites. No course may be counted as both a required course and a restricted elective.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Ecology | ||
| ANSC*3180 | Wildlife Nutrition | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3450 | Introduction to Aquatic Environments | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3670 | Introduction to Wildlife Rehabilitation | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3680 | Wildlife Rehabilitation: Caring for Sick, Injured, and Orphaned Wildlife | 0.50 |
| BOT*3050 | Plant Functional Ecology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*2030 | Meteorology and Climatology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3010 | Climate Change Biology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3270 | Forest Biodiversity | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3290 | Waterborne Disease Ecology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3370 | Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*4350 | Forest Ecology | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2000 | Geomorphology | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2110 | Climate and the Biophysical Environment | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3000 | Fluvial Processes | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3610 | Environmental Hydrology | 0.50 |
| NUTR*3210 | Fundamentals of Nutrition | 0.50 |
| ZOO*2090 | Vertebrate Structure and Function | 0.50 |
| ZOO*2700 | Invertebrate Morphology & Evolution | 0.50 |
| ZOO*4570 | Marine Ecological Processes | 0.50 |
| Conservation | ||
| BIOL*4120 | Evolutionary Ecology | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4150 | Wildlife Conservation and Management | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4350 | Limnology of Natural and Polluted Waters | 0.50 |
| ENVS*2040 | Plant Health and the Environment | 0.50 |
| ENVS*2330 | Current Issues in Ecosystem Science and Biodiversity | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3000 | Nature Interpretation | 0.50 |
| ENVS*3010 | Climate Change Biology | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2480 | Mapping and GIS | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3020 | Global Environmental Change | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3110 | Biogeography | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3210 | Indigenous-Settler Relationships in Environmental Governance | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3480 | GIS and Spatial Analysis | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4110 | Environmental Systems Analysis | 1.00 |
| GEOG*4230 | Environmental Impact Assessment | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4480 | Applied Geomatics | 1.00 |
| Policy, Law and Management | ||
| BIOL*4500 | Natural Resource Policy Analysis | 0.50 |
| ECON*2100 | Economic Growth and Environmental Quality | 0.50 |
| FARE*2700 | Survey of Natural Resource Economics | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2210 | Environment and Resources | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4210 | Environmental Governance | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4220 | Local Environmental Management | 0.50 |
| PHIL*2070 | Philosophy of the Environment | 0.50 |
| POLS*3370 | Environmental Politics and Governance | 0.50 |
| Independent Research, Experiential Learning, and Field Courses | ||
| BIOL*3660 | Internship In Biological Science | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4410 | Field Ecology | 0.75 |
| BIOL*4700 | Field Biology | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4710 | Field Biology | 0.25 |
| BIOL*4800 | Field Biology | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4810 | Field Biology | 0.25 |
| ENVS*3330 | Flexible Environmental Internship | 0.50 |
| ENVS*4410 | Introduction to Advanced Independent Research | 0.50 |
| ENVS*4420 | Advanced Independent Research | 0.50 |
| ENVS*4430 | Advanced Independent Research | 1.00 |
| IAEF*3500 | Experiential Education | 0.50 |
| IBIO*4500 | Research in Integrative Biology I | 1.00 |
| IBIO*4510 | Research in Integrative Biology II | 1.00 |
| IBIO*4521 | Thesis in Integrative Biology | 1.00 |
| IBIO*4522 | Thesis in Integrative Biology | 1.00 |
| UNIV*3140 | Flexible Internship in Agri-Food | 0.50 |
| ZOO*4300 | Marine Biology and Oceanography | 0.75 |
Credit Summary
(20.00 Total Credits)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental Sciences core | 7.00 | |
| Required courses | 4.50 | |
| Restricted electives | 6.00 | |
| Free electives | 2.50 | |
| Total Credits | 20 | |
Students are reminded that 6.00 credits of their B.Sc. (Env.) degree must be at the 3000-4000 level, and no program may include more than 7.00 credits at the 1000 level.
Students are encouraged to seek advice on their choices from their faculty advisor. With prior approval, students may be able to use courses not on these lists towards their Ecology restrictive electives.
Co-op Requirements (Honours)
This is a major within the degree: Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences.
The Co-op program in Ecology is a five year program including four work terms. Students must complete a Fall, Winter and Summer work term, and must follow the academic work schedule as outlined below (also found on the Co-operative Education website: https://www.recruitguelph.ca/cecs/). Please refer to the Co-operative Education program policy with respect to adjusting this schedule.
Academic and Co-op Work Term Schedule
| Year | Fall | Winter | Summer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Academic Semester 1 | Academic Semester 2; COOP*1100 | Off |
| 2 | Academic Semester 3 | COOP*1000 Work Term I | COOP*2000 Work Term II |
| 3 | Academic Semester 4 | Academic Semester 5 | COOP*3000 Work Term III |
| 4 | COOP*4000 Work Term IV | Academic Semester 6 | Off |
| 5 | Academic Semester 7 | Academic Semester 8 | N/A |
Please refer to the Co-operative Education program policy with respect to work term performance grading, work term report grading and program completion requirements.
For additional program information students should consult with their Co-op Co-ordinator and Co-op Faculty Advisor, listed on the Co-operative Education web site.
Credit Summary
(22.00 Total Credits)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental Sciences Core | 7.00 | |
| Required Courses | 4.50 | |
| Restricted Electives | 6.00 | |
| Free Electives | 2.50 | |
| Co-op Work Terms | 2.00 | |
| Total Credits | 22 | |
Students are reminded that 6.00 credits of their B.Sc. (Env.) degree must be at the 3000-4000 level, and no program may include more than 7.00 credits at the 1000 level.
Students are encouraged to seek advice on their choices from their faculty advisor. With prior approval, students may be able to use courses not on these lists towards their Ecology restrictive electives.
Recommended Program Sequence
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Semester 1 - Fall | ||
| BIOL*1070 | Discovering Biodiversity | 0.50 |
| CHEM*1040 | General Chemistry I | 0.50 |
| ENVS*1030 | Introduction to Environmental Sciences | 1.00 |
| MATH*1080 | Elements of Calculus I | 0.50 |
| Semester 2 - Winter | ||
| BIOL*1090 | Introduction to Molecular and Cellular Biology | 0.50 |
| CHEM*1050 | General Chemistry II | 0.50 |
| COOP*1100 | Introduction to Co-operative Education | 0.00 |
| FARE*1040 | Introduction to Environmental Economics, Law and Policy | 1.00 |
| GEOG*1300 | Introduction to the Biophysical Environment | 0.50 |
| Summer Semester | ||
| No academic semester or work term | ||
| Semester 3 - Fall | ||
| BIOL*2060 | Ecology | 0.50 |
| PHYS*1080 | Physics for Life Sciences 2 | 0.50 |
| or PHYS*1300 | Fundamentals of Physics | |
| ECON*2100 | Economic Growth and Environmental Quality 3 | 0.50 |
| or FARE*2700 | Survey of Natural Resource Economics | |
| 1.00 electives or restricted electives | 1.00 | |
| Winter Semester | ||
| COOP*1000 | Co-op Work Term I | 0.50 |
| Summer Semester | ||
| COOP*2000 | Co-op Work Term II | 0.50 |
| Semester 4 - Fall | ||
| BIOC*2580 | Introduction to Biochemistry | 0.50 |
| BOT*3410 | Plant Anatomy 4 | 0.50 |
| or ZOO*2090 | Vertebrate Structure and Function | |
| 1.50 electives or restricted electives | 1.50 | |
| Semester 5 - Winter 4 | ||
| BIOL*2400 | Evolution | 0.50 |
| MBG*2040 | Foundations in Molecular Biology and Genetics | 0.50 |
| STAT*2230 | Biostatistics for Integrative Biology | 0.50 |
| 1.00 electives or restricted electives | 1.00 | |
| Summer Semester | ||
| COOP*3000 | Co-op Work Term III | 0.50 |
| Fall Semester | ||
| COOP*4000 | Co-op Work Term IV | 0.50 |
| Semester 6 - Winter | ||
| BIOL*3060 | Populations, Communities and Ecosystems | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3130 | Conservation Biology | 0.50 |
| 1.50 electives or restricted electives | 1.50 | |
| Summer Semester | ||
| No academic semester or work term | ||
| Semester 7- Fall | ||
| BIOL*3010 | Laboratory and Field Work in Ecology | 0.50 |
| ENVS*4001 | Project in Environmental Sciences | 0.50 |
| 1.50 electives or restricted electives | 1.50 | |
| Semester 8 - Winter | ||
| ENVS*4002 | Project in Environmental Sciences | 0.50 |
| 2.00 electives or restricted electives | 2.00 | |
- 2
Students lacking 4U physics or equivalent must take PHYS*1300 Fundamentals of Physics. Students with 4U physics or equivalent must take PHYS*1080 Physics for Life Sciences. PHYS*1130 Physics with Applications may be substituted for PHYS*1080 Physics for Life Sciences.
- 3
GEOG*2210 Environment and Resources may be substituted for ECON*2100 Economic Growth and Environmental Quality or FARE*2700 Survey of Natural Resource Economics and would be taken in semester 5.
- 4
ZOO*2700 Invertebrate Morphology & Evolution may be substituted for BOT*3410 Plant Anatomy or ZOO*2090 Vertebrate Structure and Function and would be taken in semester 5.
Restricted Electives
Students are required to take 6.00 restricted elective credits in Ecology as noted below. Of these, at least 1.00 credits must be at the 4000 level.
- One from:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BOT*2100 | Life Strategies of Plants | 0.50 |
| or ZOO*3600 | Comparative Animal Physiology I | |
- A minimum of 0.50 credits from:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL*4150 | Wildlife Conservation and Management | 0.50 |
| CIS*1500 | Introduction to Programming | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2420 | The Earth From Space | 0.50 |
| GEOG*2480 | Mapping and GIS | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3420 | Remote Sensing of the Environment 5 | 0.50 |
| GEOG*3480 | GIS and Spatial Analysis 5 | 0.50 |
| GEOG*4480 | Applied Geomatics | 1.00 |
- 5
Additional prerequisites are required.
- Students in the Ecology Major are required to take an additional 5.00 restricted elective credits from the following lists. Some courses may require other courses from the list as prerequisites.No course may be counted as both a required course and a restricted elective.
Course List Code Title Credits Ecology ANSC*3180 Wildlife Nutrition 0.50 BIOL*3450 Introduction to Aquatic Environments 0.50 BIOL*3670 Introduction to Wildlife Rehabilitation 0.50 BIOL*3680 Wildlife Rehabilitation: Caring for Sick, Injured, and Orphaned Wildlife 0.50 BOT*3050 Plant Functional Ecology 0.50 ENVS*2030 Meteorology and Climatology 0.50 ENVS*3010 Climate Change Biology 0.50 ENVS*3270 Forest Biodiversity 0.50 ENVS*3290 Waterborne Disease Ecology 0.50 ENVS*3370 Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology 0.50 ENVS*4350 Forest Ecology 0.50 GEOG*2000 Geomorphology 0.50 GEOG*2110 Climate and the Biophysical Environment 0.50 GEOG*3000 Fluvial Processes 0.50 GEOG*3610 Environmental Hydrology 0.50 NUTR*3210 Fundamentals of Nutrition 0.50 ZOO*2090 Vertebrate Structure and Function 0.50 ZOO*2700 Invertebrate Morphology & Evolution 0.50 ZOO*4570 Marine Ecological Processes 0.50 Conservation BIOL*4120 Evolutionary Ecology 0.50 BIOL*4150 Wildlife Conservation and Management 0.50 BIOL*4350 Limnology of Natural and Polluted Waters 0.50 ENVS*2040 Plant Health and the Environment 0.50 ENVS*2330 Current Issues in Ecosystem Science and Biodiversity 0.50 ENVS*3000 Nature Interpretation 0.50 ENVS*3010 Climate Change Biology 0.50 GEOG*2480 Mapping and GIS 0.50 GEOG*3020 Global Environmental Change 0.50 GEOG*3110 Biogeography 0.50 GEOG*3210 Indigenous-Settler Relationships in Environmental Governance 0.50 GEOG*3480 GIS and Spatial Analysis 0.50 GEOG*4110 Environmental Systems Analysis 1.00 GEOG*4230 Environmental Impact Assessment 0.50 GEOG*4480 Applied Geomatics 1.00 Policy, Law and Management BIOL*4500 Natural Resource Policy Analysis 0.50 ECON*2100 Economic Growth and Environmental Quality 0.50 FARE*2700 Survey of Natural Resource Economics 0.50 GEOG*2210 Environment and Resources 0.50 GEOG*4210 Environmental Governance 0.50 GEOG*4220 Local Environmental Management 0.50 PHIL*2070 Philosophy of the Environment 0.50 POLS*3370 Environmental Politics and Governance 0.50 Independent Research and Field Courses BIOL*4410 Field Ecology 0.75 BIOL*4700 Field Biology 0.50 BIOL*4710 Field Biology 0.25 BIOL*4800 Field Biology 0.50 BIOL*4810 Field Biology 0.25 ENVS*4410 Introduction to Advanced Independent Research 0.50 ENVS*4420 Advanced Independent Research 0.50 ENVS*4430 Advanced Independent Research 1.00 IBIO*4500 Research in Integrative Biology I 1.00 IBIO*4510 Research in Integrative Biology II 1.00 IBIO*4521 Thesis in Integrative Biology 1.00 IBIO*4522 Thesis in Integrative Biology 1.00 ZOO*4300 Marine Biology and Oceanography 0.75
Minor Requirements (Honours)
This minor cannot be combined with a major in Ecology.
A minimum of 5.00 credits is required to complete the minor, which must include:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL*2060 | Ecology | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3010 | Laboratory and Field Work in Ecology | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3060 | Populations, Communities and Ecosystems | 0.50 |
| BIOL*4110 | Ecological Methods | 1.00 |
| BIOL*4120 | Evolutionary Ecology | 0.50 |
| Of the remaining 2.00 required credits, students will select from the following: | ||
| Select at least 0.50 credits from the following: | ||
| BIOL*2400 | Evolution | 0.50 |
| BIOL*3020 | Population Genetics | 0.50 |
| Select at least 0.50 credits from the following: | ||
| BOT*2100 | Life Strategies of Plants | 0.50 |
| ZOO*2090 | Vertebrate Structure and Function | 0.50 |
| Select 0.50 credits from the following: | ||
| GEOG*1220 | Human Impact on the Environment | 0.50 |
| GEOG*1300 | Introduction to the Biophysical Environment | 0.50 |