45009 - Systematic Botany Laboratory

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student is able to place in a historical perspective the classification systems which organize plant diversity in a taxonomic hierarchy; he attains, also, the ability to identify the most common plant species in the region, using dichotomous analytical keys, interactive or traditional, based on macroscopic and microscopic morphology. The course, mainly practical, includes indoor and outdoor practices.

Course contents

Principles of plant systematics. Hierarchical structure of classifications and taxonomic categories. Sampling of plant organisms: guided tous and field sampling. Detection of macro- and microscopic diagnostic characters. Identification of taxa by traditional analytical keys and/or computerized keys.

Readings/Bibliography

on-line distribution of didactic material, available at AMS Campus - AlmaDL - UniBo      
S. Pignatti (1982) "Flora d'Italia" Edagricole.    
P.L. Nimis et al. (2012) "Identification keys on mobile devices: The Dryades experience" Plant Biosystems 146 (4).  
Department of Environmental Horticulture, University of Florida; FloraGator: a web-based, multiple-entry key for flowering plant family identification (http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/floragator/key.html)

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons, seminars and conferences. Field material collection.  Didactic excursions and practical trainings.

Assessment methods

The end-of-course exam aims to assess the achievement of learning objectives: principles of plant Systematics (representation of classification systems by Ladders, Maps, Trees. Evolutionary meaning of phylogenetic dendrograms). Hierarchical structure of the classifications and taxonomic categories (placement of plant organisms in the different hierarchical ranks of a classification system based on their evolutionary history). Ability to identify plant specimens collected in the field up to the taxonomic rank of species, using paper or interactive dichotomous keys.
The examination, evaluated in thirtieths, consists of a written part, on the topics of the frontal lessons, and a practical part that concerning the identification of plant species using dichotomous keys contained in the "Flora d'Italia" (Pignatti, 1982) or in the on-line softwares Dryades (http://www.dryades.eu/home1.html) and FloraGator (http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/floragator/key.html).

Teaching tools

Power-Point presentations. Field and lab equipments.

Links to further information

http://www.unibo.it/docenti/lucia.conte

Office hours

See the website of Lucia Conte