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Arachnology Arachnology is the study of arthropods belonging to the class Arachnida. Arachnids include spiders, scorpions, mites and ticks. Most arachnids are carnivorous. All arachnids have a body divided into two parts, a cephalothorax and an abdomen. Arachnids have four pairs of segmented legs (compared to insects that have a separate head, thorax and body, and three pairs of legs). My cat, The Little Nipper, is an amateur arachnologist, although he has a more utilitarian attitude toward spiders and other arachnids: he plays with them, and then he eats them. Web:
Entomology Entomology is the study of insects, the largest class of the phylum Arthropoda (invertebrates). Entomologists recognize more than 750,000 described species of insects, although it is thought that there may be as many as 5,000,000 different species in the world. As a general rule, insects are long, narrow, and bilaterally symmetrical (sort of like Calista Flockhart). Their bodies are composed of ringlike segments, grouped into the head (eyes, antennae and mouthparts), thorax (legs and wings), and abdomen. The surface of the body consists of hardened plates, called sclerites, separated by membranous areas called sutures. Here is an easy way to make money. Go into a bar where entomologists hang out. Find a group that has been drinking a lot, and bet them that insects have more than 10 abdominal segments. When they scoff at you and take the bet, whip out a magnifying glass and a couple of bugs. "Look here," you can tell them, "these appendages at the end of the abdomen are really a greatly reduced segment. So, even though it doesn't look like it, there are actually 11 segments in the abdomen." (Hint for guys: This is a great way to meet girls.) Web:
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Ethology Talk and General Discussion Ethology is the study of animal behavior. A simplistic view of animals would say that a particular type of behavior is either instinctual or learned. However, modern thought holds that much of what we observe cannot be explained so simply. We have come to realize that much depends on an interaction between an animal's genetic inheritance and its environment when it is young. I find the ethology discussions on the Net fascinating, and even if you are not a biologist, you may enjoy reading what people have to say. Web:
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Herpetology Herpetology is the branch of zoology that studies reptiles and amphibians. Reptiles are dry-skinned vertebrates, usually scaly and cold-blooded. They have low-hanging bodies with four short legs (except snakes) and long tails. They breathe air, live on land (mostly) and have thick, waterproof skins. The most well-known reptiles are snakes, turtles and crocodiles. Amphibians have moist skins, without scales or with tiny scales. They deposit their eggs in or near water. Young amphibians start life as water-breathing tadpoles, and grow into air-breathing adults. The most well-known amphibians are frogs, toads, salamanders and newts. Web:
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Ichthyology There are close to 21,000 different species of fish in the world. Fish have adapted to an underwater environment. They breathe oxygen dissolved in water with the use of gills, and have maintained the same general physical characteristics throughout their history. Biologists divide fish into three classes: the most primitive jawless fish are called Agnatha; fish with cartilage and no true bones, such as sharks and rays, are called Chondrichthyes; bony fish, the ones with which most people are familiar, are called Osteichthyes. Generally speaking, the study of fish can be divided into two basic disciplines. Ichthyology is the scientific study of fish: their physiology, habitat, history and characteristics. The second basic discipline is social ichthyology, the study of people with fish-like faces. If you are a social ichthyologist, you are more or less on your own, but I can send you a picture of my old high school chemistry teacher. Web:
Malacology Malacology is the study of mollusks: the second largest invertebrate phylum, which includes clams, oysters, scallops, bivalves, gastropods (such as snails), squid and octopus. Some mollusks are so small as to be almost invisible to the human eye. Other mollusks are large. A giant squid has been found that measured 70 feet (21.3 meters) long. Most mollusks live in water or at shoreline in the tidal zone. They live inside shells and have soft bodies, as well as a "foot" that allows them to move around. (Some mollusks, such as the octopus, have a shell that is enclosed by their body.) Web:
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Mammals What makes a mammal a mammal? Well, let's say you're in a bowling alley, standing at the snack bar waiting for a hot dog. You look up and see a warm-blooded vertebrate with hair or fur, a four-chambered heart, a relatively large brain, and mammary glands (don't stare). Chances are, you are looking at a mammal. The first mammals developed from reptiles about 200 million years ago. Today, there are more than 4,000 recognized species. My favorites are the Felis catus (domestic cats), Mesocricetus auratus (hamsters), Equus caballus (horses), and Homo sapiens (people). Web:
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Marine Life When you need to find out how Ctenophora differ from Platyhelminthes, it's comforting to know that the Net will not let you down. If you have a question about a marine animal, there is a good chance that the answer is at one of these Web sites. The Usenet groups are for discussing dolphins, whales and deep-sea biology. Web:
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Nematology The phylum Nematoda comprises the roundworms, small organisms that live in water or soil. Some of the nematodes, such as pinworms or hookworms, can cause illness in people, although most nematodes feed on bacteria, fungi and other organisms found in the soil. There are nearly 20,000 known species of nematodes, and they are among the most numerous multi-cellular animals in the world. If you were to look at a nematode under a microscope, you would see an outer body wall, an inner digestive tube and a fluid-filled cavity between the two. Thus, some people describe a nematode as being a tube within a tube. Think about this: the next time you pick up a handful of soil, you are probably holding more nematodes in your hand than the total number of people you have met in your whole life. Now throw away all the soil except a gram or so. Put it in your palm and look at it. That gram of soil contains more organisms, of one type or another, than the number of human beings on Earth. Web:
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Ornithology Birds belong to the class Aves and are characterized by having wings, a streamlined body covered with feathers, light bones, a four-chambered heart (like mammals), a fast metabolism, a relatively large brain, acute hearing, little sense of smell and no external ears. Ornithology, the study of birds, is one of the few sciences where amateurs often make important contributions, usually in the area of bird populations, by making notes about where various types of birds have been sighted. Web:
Primates Primates are the biological order to which human beings belong. Broadly speaking, there are two basic types of primates, grouped according to physical traits: the sub-order Prosimii (the lower primates), and the sub-order Anthropoidea (higher primates). Prosimii, which have longer snouts, include shrews, lemurs, lories and bushbabies. Anthropoidea, which have shorter snouts, include marmosets, monkeys, gibbons, gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans and human beings. Primatology, a subfield of anthropology, is the the study of nonhuman primates. Web:
Strange Animals This Web site discusses the mistakes scientists have made in relation to animal life. Read about sea monsters, dragons and dinosaurs, as well as forgeries and frauds perpetrated by scientists. There are also some fascinating drawings, made by scientists, that show various types of monsters. Web:
Zoological Resources Slippery, slimy, creepy, crawly, furry or scaly, these sites probably have it covered. Here are some nice collections of resources such as Web sites, databases, museums, Web servers and image galleries related to zoology. Web:
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