BT2260:03
Diversity of the Australian Flora
| Townsville | HECS Band 2 |
25 hours lectures, 36 hours practicals, 2 days fieldwork. Semester 1.
Staff: Dr R Congdon.
The subject will focus on principles and methods required to describe and understand the diversity of plants and their communities. The subject encompasses the basis for the description and identification of plants with special emphasis on selected Australian and tropical families, an introduction to the diversity and ecology of rainforests and savannas; soil description and interpretation; floristic and physiognomic aspects of Australian vegetation.
Learning Objectives:
- to learn the principles of identification and identification techniques;
- to gain a knowledge of the principles of nomenclature and systems of classification;
- to gain an understanding of the nature of speciation processes;
- to learn basic methods used in the study of plant communities;
- to gain experience in identifying rainforest and woodland plants and basic techniques for describing plant communities.
Assessment by a three-hour examination (60%); on course reports (30%); practical report (10%).