SUMMER FIELD COURSE: ECOLOGY & SYSTEMATICS
OF DIATOMS

Diatoms are single-celled algae found in nearly every aquatic habitat.Their
silica (SiO2) walls are one of the features that make them useful as
environmental tools in a number of fields, including paleoclimatology,
ecology, geology, anthropology, and paleontology. They are successfully
applied as proxies for pH, temperature, salinity, nutrient concentration,
hydrologic balance, period of ice-cover, and lake depth, among other
parameters.

An intensive course will be again be offered at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory,
from June 19 to July 15, 2005. The course will be co-taught by Sarah
Spaulding, University of Colorado, Boulder and Mark Edlund, Science
Museum of Minnesota. Teofil Nakov, Faculty of Natural Sciences and
Mathematics in Skopje, Republic of Macedonia, will be the Teaching
Assistant. Teofil is the first recipient of the John C. Kingston Diatom
Fellowship at Iowa Lakeside Lab.

Ecology and Systematics of Diatoms will introduce students to field and
laboratory study of freshwater diatoms. The class will visit diverse aquatic
habitats of the Upper Midwest to make live and fossil collections of a large
number of freshwater diatom genera. Students will learn techniques in
collection, preparation, and identification of diatoms. Lectures will cover
taxonomy, systematics and biogeography of most of the freshwater genera.
Students will construct individual voucher collections using modern
curatorial techniques.

This is an intensive, field-oriented class appropriate for advanced
undergraduate students, graduate students, and post graduate workers in
ecology and diatom taxonomy. Students are encouraged to bring individual
research materials, and there will be opportunities to discuss research
approaches and practical problems of using diatoms in ecological and
paleoecological applications.

Class size is limited to ten students, so early enrollment is encouraged.
Two CW Reimer Scholarships will be awarded to students in the course
based on scholastic merit. Course description, information concerning Iowa
Lakeside Laboratory, and registration materials are available at:
http://www.ag.iastate.edu/centers/lakeside/diatoms.html

For more information, contact:
Dr. Sarah A. Spaulding
Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research
Campus Box 450
University of Colorado
Boulder CO 80309
sarah.spaulding@colorado.edu
(303) 735-6154