Unit ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS ANALYSIS

Course
Biology
Study-unit Code
GP004073
Curriculum
Bioambientale
Teacher
Alessandro Ludovisi
Teachers
  • Alessandro Ludovisi
Hours
  • 47 ore - Alessandro Ludovisi
CFU
6
Course Regulation
Coorte 2026
Offered
2026/27
Learning activities
Caratterizzante
Area
Biodiversità e ambiente
Sector
BIOS-05/A
Type of study-unit
Obbligatorio (Required)
Type of learning activities
Attività formativa monodisciplinare
Language of instruction
Italian
Contents
The origins of the complexity of ecological systems
Overview of types of ecological data and survey methods
Ecological statistics
Biodiversity analysis
Assessment of ecological status
The program development includes the analysis of real case studies and
the use of statistical analysis software
Reference texts
Krebs, C.J. 1999. Ecological Methodology, 2nd ed. Addison-Wesley
Educational Publishers, Inc.
Krebs, C.J. 2014. Ecological Methodology 3rd ed.
L. Soliani, 2008. Statistica Applicata 2008, UNINOVA Ed.
L. Soliani, 2003. Statistica Applicata alla Ricerca Biologica e Ambientale,
UNINOVA Ed.
Obiettivi formativi
Educational objectives
The educational goal of the course is to acquire methodological tools useful for collecting and interpreting ecological data, in order to understand ecosystem dynamics on both local and global scales.
Teaching methods
Lecture and participatory case study analysis using statistical analysis software
Learning verification modality
Presentation of an analysis of a case study agreed upon with the teacher
Extended program
The origins of the complexity of ecological systems
Overview of types of ecological data and detection methods:
- Continuous, discrete, and categorical variables
- Field and remote sensing data
- Environmental data
- Species composition and specific abundance data
Ecological statistics:
- Sampling: experimental design and representativeness
- Univariate statistics: Chi-Square, Poisson, Normal, Student's t distributions - tests of homogeneity
- Bivariate statistics: relationships, correlations, and regressions - significance tests
- Multivariate statistics: Cluster analysis, multivariate tests
- Geostatistical methodologies
Biodiversity:
- Estimating species richness - diversity indices - similarity indices - hierarchical diversity
Assessment of ecological status: Ecological quality indices
The program development includes the analysis of real case studies and the use of statistical analysis software