Sunday, January 3, 2010

PostHeaderIcon Packing

11:46 AM | Posted by NRES 285/ 499, Fall 2010, UIUC | Edit Post

We were told over and over during lectures that our accommodations in Mexico would be “rustic.” This is a relatively vague description. Other pearls of wisdom included:
• “Pack lightly. The vans have to carry you and all your stuff up the mountain and back, and there will be LIMITED SPACE.”
• “Shake your shoes out in the morning because there are scorpions.”
• “If there is enough rain the week before, you may be able to bathe in the river.”

So aside from a few fair warnings about stinging animals and nonstandard sanitation, I feel mostly in the dark about this. BUT, I am so looking forward to the experience, whatever it turns out to be. I’ll bathe in the river everyday if I have to. I will try to sample 1000 palms. I will eat everything I’m served with reckless abandon. And I am definitely going to get to know everyone in the class (finally)!--Lenna O.

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

About the Class

My photo
Alamos, Sonora, Mexico
This course combines pre-trip classroom instruction with field study in the Sierra de Alamos in Southeastern Sonora, Mexico. Its purpose is to introduce both undergraduate and graduate students to biodiversity and conservation of a diverse and significantly threatened ecosystem.

Readings

  • Alvarez-Yepiz, J. C., A. Martinez-Yrizar, et al. (2008). "Variation in vegetation structure and soil properties related to land use history of old-growth and secondary tropical dry forests in northwestern Mexico." Forest Ecology and Management 256(3): 355-366.
  • Anten, N. P. R., M. Martinez-Ramos, et al. (2003). "Defoliation and growth in an understory palm: Quantifying the contributions of compensatory responses." Ecology 84(11): 2905-2918.
  • Dacosta, J. M. and J. Klicka (2008). "The Great American Interchange in birds: a phylogenetic perspective with the genus Trogon." Molecular Ecology 17(5): 1328-1343.
  • Endress, B. A., D. L. Gorchov, et al. (2004). "Harvest of the palm Chamaedorea radicalis, its effects on leaf production, and implications for sustainable management." Conservation Biology 18(3): 822-830.
  • Endress, B. A., D. L. Gorchov, et al. (2004). "Non-timber forest product extraction: Effects of harvest and browsing on an understory palm." Ecological Applications 14(4): 1139-1153.
  • Felger, R. S. and E. Joyal (1999). "The palms (Areacaceae) of Sonora, Mexico." Aliso 18(1): 1-18.
  • Joyal, E. (1996). "The palm has its time: An ethnoecology of Sabal uresana in Sonora, Mexico." Economic Botany 50(4): 446-462.
  • Joyal, E. (1996). "The use of Sabal uresana (Arecaceae) and other palms in Sonora, Mexico." Economic Botany 50(4): 429-445.
  • O' Brien, C., A. D. Flesch, et al. (2006). Biological inventory of the Rio Aros, Sonora, Mexico: A river unknown. C. O'Brien. Tucson, University of Arizona.
  • Rendon-Carmona, H., A. Martinez-Yrizar, et al. (2009). "Selective cutting of woody species in a Mexican tropical dry forest: Incompatibility between use and conservation." Forest Ecology and Management 257(2): 567-579.
  • Ticktin, T. (2004). "The ecological implications of harvesting non-timber forest products." Journal of Applied Ecology 41(1): 11-21.
  • Vasquez-Leon, M. and D. Liverman (2004). "The political ecology of land-use change: Affluent ranchers and destitute farmers in the Mexican municipio of Alamos." Human Organization 63(1): 21-33.

Followers

Blogger Template created with Artisteer.