Zoology

What is zoology? Zoology is a subset of biology that studies creatures of the kingdom Animalia. A person who studies zoology is a zoologist. The two main divisions of zoology are vertebrate and invertebrate zoology. There are 21 phyla within the invertebrates, comprising over 95% of the species in the animal kingdom, including all creatures except reptiles, fish, frogs, birds and mammals. http://www.marietta.edu/~mcshaffd/invert/ http://waynesword.palomar.edu/trnov01.htm#animals In the section below you will find the several subsets of zoology that focus on a particular class of animal, including snakes, insects, and invertebrates. In the fast facts section you will find other information; and below there are zoology links, blogs and news sections to help you find out more about this fascinating topic.

• Entomology (study of insects)
• Primatology (study of primates)
• Ethology (behavior of animals)
• Ichthyology (study of fish)
• Mammalogy (study of mammals)
• Ornithology (study of birds)
• Herpetology (study of reptiles)
• Parasitology (study of parasites)

Students who plan to major in zoology need to have a strong scientific background. There is, of course, and introductory zoology class which covers the kingdom Animalia and all of its phyla for a broad familiarization of the subject. It is normal for this degree to have a background in chemistry, with coursework in inorganic, organic and biochemistry (usually for graduate work}. Biology coursework will include a foundation in two semesters of general biology, 2-4 courses in specialty areas of zoology, and genetics. Usually science programs require at least two semesters of calculus, statistics and a course in logic as well. http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalogarchive/02-03-catalog/colleges/liberal/zoology.html