VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY COURSE SCHEDULE
Trinity College

What is a Vertebrate?
LAB 1: BODY PLAN OF VERTEBRATES AND OTHER CHORDATES
Evolutionary Origins of Vertebrates

Embryonic Development of Chordates
LAB 2: PHYLOGENY AND CLASSIFICATION OF VERTEBRATES
Systematics and Classification

Vertebrate Speciation and Patterns of Evolution
LAB 3: SKELETO-MUSCULAR ANATOMY IN SHARKS
Early Evolution of Fishes

Diversity of Modern Fishes
LAB 4: QUIZ (Labs 1-3); VISCERAL MORPHOLOGY OF THE SHARK
Written Exam#1

Life in Water
LAB 5: SENSE ORGANS AND NERVOUS SYSTEM ORGANIZATION
Invasion of the Land: Origin & Radiation of Tetrapods

Biology of Living "Amphibians"
LAB 6: BRAIN & CRANIAL NERVES IN THE SHARK
Diversity of Living "Reptiles

Life in the Mesozoic
LAB 7: LAB PRACTICAL
Energetics and Thermoregulation in Vertebrates

Origins of Birds, Feathers, and Flight
LAB 8: AMNIOTE SKELETONS
Written Exam #2

Research Lecture: Evolution of Reproductive Patterns in Reptiles & Birds
LAB 9: MAMMALIAN MUSCULATURE I
Synapsids, Therapsids, and the Origins of Mammals

Diversity and Adaptations of Living Mammals
LAB 10: QUIZ (Labs 8-9); MAMMALIAN MUSCULATURE II
Functional Morphology: Terrestrial Locomotion

Mammalian Reproductive Patterns
LAB 11: VISCERAL MORPHOLOGY OF MAMMALS
Evolution of Hominids and Other Primates

Ritualistic Ingestion of Meleagris gallopavo

Adaptations of Endotherms to Extreme Environments
LAB 12: FUNCTIONAL MORPHOLOGY OF THE MAMMALIAN BRAIN
Written Exam#3

The Evolution of Brains
FINAL LAB PRACTICAL
Vertebrate Extinctions and the Future of the Biosphere