Biology 202 - Vertebrate Life - 2004

The purpose of the course is to introduce you to the diversity of vertebrates, past and present, and their specializations. In doing so I hope that you will better see how we fit into the natural world.

In this experience you will gain factual information that will allow you to underdstand the world of vertebrates.

Success will allow you to apply course material to solving problems when asked to answer questions about vertebrate life.

The course will include assigned readings, lectures, independent projects and reports as we look at vertebrates from the earliest known forms to more recently derived forms. Although our syllabus will reflect this evolutionary history, throughout the semester we will study in a topical manner the characteristic problems and solutions that faced vertebrates. These topics deal with specializations in physiology, behavior and ecology.

Syllabus

Meetings: Lecture in FJ-C, N hr, 11:20—12:50, other meetings in FJ-117w, TBA.

Zoo work will be done independently⁺.

Book: Vertebrate Life. 6th ed. Pough, Janis, and Heiser. Prentice Hall Publ. NJ. 2002.

Bring book to lectures, demo’s, and labs.

*Specific pages, where relevant, will be given on lecture and lab outlines.

Day projects Topic [lab/demo] *Readings

--------------------------- Non-Amniotes -------------------------

Jan. 18 Course Spec’s, Classifications and Phylogenies Chapt’s. 1, 2*, 3*, 24*

Jan. 20 Chordate and Vertebrate Characteristics Chapt’s. 1, 2*, 3*, 24*

Jan. 22 [23^rd, Vertebrate Char’s Demo, Lab] Chapt’s. 1, 2*, 3*, 24*

Jan. 27 Early Paleozoic Life (Cambian -Devonian); Chapt’s 7*, 4*

Life in Wate

Jan. 29 Major Fish Radiations Chapt’s 3, 6*. 4*

Feb. 3 3 Quiz 1Fish locomotion Chapt 6*, 4*

[Zoo, fish lab.; assigned 3^rd, due 17^th] Chapt 6*

Feb. 5 Late Paleozoic Life (Devonian-Permian) Chapt 7*

Non-Amniote Tetrapods, Early Tetrapods Chapt 8

Feb. 10 Amphibians (Lissamphibia) & [Demo Lissamphibia] Chapt. 9

Feb. 12 Exam I

--------------------------- Amniotes -------------------------

Feb. 17 17 Amphibians (Lissamphibia) Chapt. 9,

Feb. 19 Early amniotes and Turtles Chapt 8* 10

âSPECIALâ

(FEB 23, Monday Afternoon, Required Seminar, 4:15 FJB, Refreshments earlier in the biology library. The Talk will be by Dr. Steven Reichling, Curator of Reptiles, Memphis Zoo. His talk will be about conservation efforts and the collaboration it takes between scientists, political bodies, and industry/business. He will be talking about the endangered Louisiana Pine Snake and its dependence on its natural food, pocket gophers and their dependence on……you get the idea).-

Feb. 24 Ectothermy, Desert Adaptation, Freezing Adaptations Chapt’s. 12

24 [Zoo, “Reptile”/Amphib. assigned 24^th, due Mar. 4^st]

Feb.26 Quiz 2, Diapsids I; Archiosauriamorpha, Chapt’s 14

Mar. 2 Diapsids I; Archiosauriamorpha Dinosaurs, Chapt’s 14

Mar. 4 4 Diapsids II; Lepidosauromorpha Chapt’s 11

[“Reptile” Demo]

Mar 16 Mesozoic Life, (lizards,Snakes,) Chapt’s. 13

Diapsids II; Lepidosauromorpha Chapt’s 11

Mar 18 Diapsids III; Birds Chapt. 16, 17

18 Zoo Projects [Bird Diversity; Mammal Diversity and Social Behavior]

[Mar 23-April 3^rd:

This is the assumed time that Dr. AJ will be in China. However our syllabus will change as needed, and travel permits are finalized. See below under March Panda Madness]

Mar 23 Exam II

Mar 25 Independent Zoo Projects, Assigned March 18^th due Apr 13^th)

[Bird Diversity; Mammal Diversity and Social Behavior]

[Chapts: 15, 16, (birds) 19, 22, (mammals) for some reference material.]

Mar 30 Independent Zoo Projects

Apr 1 Independent Zoo Projects

Apr. 6 Birds Chapt. 16, 17

Apr. 13 13 Synapsids I; Early and First Mammals Chapt’s. 8*, 17, 19

Apr. 15 Life in the Cenozoic, Mammals, char’s Chapt 18, 17*, 19*

Apr. 20 Quiz 3, Synapsids II Modern Mammals, Chapt’s. 19

Apr. 22 Endothermy Chapt’s. 21

Apr. 27 Endothermy Chapt’s. 21

Apr 29 Final Comments

---------------

May 4, Exam III Wednesday, May 4 1:00-3:30 pm

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Examples of specializations to be covered throughout the above "systematic" syllabus:

evolution of bone glands

locomotion; water, air, and land social behavior

homeostasis; water and ions vision; water and land

reproduction coloration

temperature regulation hibernation

social behavior behavior

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Memphis Zoo and Aquarium Access

⁺The Memphis Zoo is open, 9:00am – 4:00 pm (must exit by 5pm), 7 days a week through February. Starting in March the zoo’s hours change to 9am till 5pm (must exit by 6pm). Admission is $10.00 (plus $3.00 for the pandas and $3.00 for parking) or $60.00 for a single year’s “plus”-membership (12 months, one person, includes pandas and free parking). A membership will also get you into 100 zoos throughout the US. As a Rhodes student if you bring your current student ID and an envelope or bill addressed to you showing your Memphis (or TN) address, you can enter for free on Tuesday after 2pm (no china exhibit). The zoo has offered students in this course a prorated membership that will allow you unlimited access from Feb-April, 2004. This 3 month membership will offer full “plus”-membership benefits and cost $15.00 More information will be provided in class about this three-month membership. I strongly recommend the prorated or a yearly membership, which will allow you to go to the zoo often and at your convenience. This will be a great advantage for all zoo projects but especially important for the two weeks in March where your class work will take you to the zoo regularly.

How to communicate with the professor

Dr. Alan P. Jaslow

Office Hours, Tue:8:30-10:00 Wed 9:00-11:00, and by appt.

off: 138e FJ, 843-3602,

email: AJaslow

home: Please feel free to call before 9pm. 272-7148

Expectations

You will be learning required material from independent readings and projects, as well as lecture and discussion. You will be expected to have covered the required material in a timely fashion, as outlined above and announced in class. Quizzes and exams will cover all lecture material, lab/demo’s, zoo work, and assigned readings. The text contains many anatomical features that we will not cover in this course (especially internal structures). There may be other topics covered in some chapters for which you will not be responsible. How do you know what will be required for quizzes and exams (Q’s and E’s)? Those topics, case studies, and specific sections, that you will need to know for Q’s and E’s will be the material covered during lecture, in lecture outline, in demo or lab handouts, in zoo work, in assignment, and in a list of example exam and quiz questions. Throughout the semester, I will pass out the phylogenies for different vertebrate groups. These will be versions of the same trees given in our text. Clean copies of these phylogenies can be brought and used on exams and quizzes.

Grading

3 Exams (100pts each)

3 Quizzes (20pts each) drop 1

Projects are Tentative in number and value!

4 Projects/Reports [number and points 98% likely as listed, but I need flexibility. Weather, animals and class composition can change what we do.]

Fish Zoo Assignment (8 points)

Reptile Zoo Assignment (10 points)

Bird Diversity (10 points)

Mammal Diversity (8 points)

Social Behavior Hypothesis test (10 points)

Total Course Points, as listed above = 386

Attendance

As the course content is defined by lecture and handouts, you are required to attend class. If you miss more than two classes your final grade will be lowered. There will be only limited ability to make up class-work. Without my prior approval any points missed will be forfeited. Approved absences are by my discretion. Please let me know ASAP if you are ill or involved in an emergency. I realize that the Febraury 23^rd Monday afternoon lecture may conflict with the class

This class is planned as a dialog. You will learn a lot by your own reading and work. Time that we meet together will be used for lecturing and demonstration but is also for you to ask questions. Please come prepared. Ask lots of questions. If I do not have time to answer them all in our class meeting times, I will do so outside of these times. In past years students asked many good questions that we can not yet answer. Hopefully someone (maybe you) will go on to answer these in graduate work.

Notes

Successful students have excellent notes that they take first as rough notes during lecture or demonstration. They then go back to fill out these rough notes through further time in expansion from memory, readings, and discussions with other students and myself. Good notes are necessary for most students to do well. (Also see “Study Strategies in Understanding Biology” AJ’s hints, separate handout)

Bring your Book to class

. We will make extensive reference to figures from you book in lecture. It will be useful to have these in hand during lecture and demonstrations.

March Panda Madness

. I have the great fortune to have received a grant to go to study Panda courtship in the wild in the Qinling Mountains of China this spring. Along with colleagues from the Memphis Zoo and the US forest service we are slated to be on site around March 25^th. As of this writing (Jan 8^th) we do not have final dates of permisson from the Chinese Forestry Department. The finalization of these permit dates will set our travel dates. Therefore our syllabus for this class is tentative for March-April. There will be some two-three week window when I will be in China. Unfortunately I will not be able to take you folks along, but maybe I’ll have the technology to send you emails of my studies of rare Chinese vertebrates (See http://www.fpnr.com/main-e.HTM) The course is planned for you to have a full commitment of class responsibilities while I’m gone. These include an Exam and Projects to be done at the zoo. Please remember that the days of this exam and independent work may change, so do not make non-class commitments for those class times, as class meetings and zoo work may be switched on the calendar. Thank you for your understanding of this needed flexibility.