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Understanding the diverse ways in which animals feed, mate, care for their offspring, avoid predators, select their habitats, communicate, and process information constitute the subject matter of behaviour. Several approaches are used to study these questions: some focus on ecological consequences and determinants; some on physiological, genetic, and developmental mechanisms; and others on evolutionary origins.

Key courses: BIOL 304, BIOL 305, BIOL 306, BIOL 307, BIOL 320, BIOL 331, or BIOL 334D1/D2 or another field course with a significant behavioural component, BIOL 373, BIOL 507.

Other suggested courses: BIOL 377, BIOL 466, BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2.

Most courses from the fields of behaviour, ecology, and evolutionary biology will be relevant for this concentration. Some courses that focus on a particular taxonomic group such as birds (Natural Resource Sciences WILD 420), amphibians and reptiles (BIOL 427), and marine mammals (BIOL 335) include a significant amount of information on behaviour.

The study of biological diversity deals with the maintenance, emergence, and history of the inexhaustible variety of different kinds of organisms. It is deeply concerned with the particular characteristics of different organisms and therefore emphasizes the detailed study of particular groups and forms the basis of comparative biology. Our knowledge of diversity is organized through the study of systematics, which seeks to understand the history of life and the phylogenetic and genetic relationships of living things. Appreciation and knowledge of diversity and systematics are essential in ecology and evolutionary biology, and underlie all work in resource utilization and conservation biology.

Key courses: BIOL 304, BIOL 305, BIOL 373.

Other suggested courses: BIOL 240, BIOL 310, BIOL 320, BIOL 324, BIOL 331, BIOL 334D1/D2, BIOL 335, BIOL 342, BIOL 350/ENTO 350, BIOL 352, BIOL 377, BIOL 418, BIOL 427, BIOL 428, BIOL 429, BIOL 463, BIOL 465, BIOL 466 or BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, BIOL 515, BIOL 540, BIOL 569, BIOL 573, BIOL 594, REDM 400, REDM 405.

Macdonald campus: PLNT 358, WILD 307, WILD 350, WILD 420, WILD 424.

Conservation biology is the study and protection of biological diversity. It is a scientific discipline closely connecting ecology and evolutionary biology with applications in public policy and management. Conservation biology focuses on keeping normal evolutionary processes working within a functional ecological context and deals with issues of how the wide variety of organisms and ecosystems can be maintained and prevented from declining. It considers population and habitat viability and complexity in the face of threats and perturbations. Cognizance of biological diversity, knowledge, expertise in both ecology and evolutionary biology, and appreciation for the political, social, and economic contexts of the biodiversity crisis underlie all work in conservation biology.

Key courses: BIOL 308, BIOL 310, BIOL 373, BIOL 465, plus at least one of the following field courses: BIOL 331 or BIOL 334D1/D2 or BIOL 335 or BIOL 428 or BIOL 429 or BIOL 553.

Other suggested courses: BIOL 304, BIOL 305, BIOL 307, BIOL 324, BIOL 342, BIOL 350, BIOL 377, BIOL 413, BIOL 427, BIOL 466, BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, BIOL 510, BIOL 515, BIOL 540, BIOL 594, ECON 225, ECON 326, GEOG 470, REDM 400.

Macdonald campus: PLNT 358, WILD 350, WILD 420, WILD 421.

Ecology is the study of the interactions between organisms and environment that affect distribution, abundance, and other characteristics of organisms. A strong analytical and quantitative orientation is common to all areas of ecology, and thus students wishing to specialize in these areas are strongly encouraged to develop their background in statistical analysis, computing, and mathematical modeling. Many of the ecology courses feature a strong analytical component, and students will find that background preparation in this area is very useful, if not essential. Ecology depends heavily on field research, and thus BIOL 331 and/or other field courses should be considered as vital to all concentrations in this area.

Evolutionary biology is the study of processes that change organisms and their characteristics through time. Evolutionary biologists are concerned with adaptations of organisms and the process of natural selection.

Key courses: BIOL 304, BIOL 305, BIOL 307, BIOL 320, BIOL 324, BIOL 331, BIOL 352, BIOL 373, BIOL 377, BIOL 463, BIOL 466 or BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, BIOL 569, BIOL 573, BIOL 594.

Other suggested courses in Organismal Biology: BIOL 335, BIOL 350, BIOL 427, BIOL 428, BIOL 463.

Macdonald campus: PLNT 358, WILD 420.

Genetics and Development: BIOL 300, BIOL 303.

Ecology and Behaviour: BIOL 309, BIOL 429, BIOL 507, BIOL 515, REDM 405.

The courses recommended for students interested in human genetics are designed to offer a broad perspective in this rapidly advancing area of biology. Genetics is covered at all levels of organization (the gene, the chromosome, the cell, the organism, and the population), using pertinent examples from all species, but with special emphasis on humans.

Key courses: BIOL 301, BIOL 370, BIOL 373, BIOL 416, BIOL 520, BIOL 568, BIOL 575.

Other suggested courses: BIOC 311, BIOL 314, BIOL 377, BIOL 466, BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, CHEM 203 or both CHEM 204 and CHEM 214, CHEM 222, HGEN 396, MIMM 314.

The discoveries that have fuelled the ongoing biomedical and biotechnology revolution have been derived from the fusion of a number of fields of biological investigation, including molecular biology; genetics; cellular and developmental biology; and biochemistry. A substantial amount of this research has been conducted upon model eukaryotic organisms, such as yeast, the fruit fly (Drosophila), the nematode (C. elegans), and the mustard weed (Arabidopsis). In the molecular genetics and development concentration, students will obtain a comprehensive understanding of how these 鈥渕odel eukaryotes鈥� have advanced our knowledge of the mechanisms responsible for cellular function and organismal development. Graduates from this concentration will be well prepared to pursue higher degrees in the fields of basic biology, biotechnology, and biomedicine, or to assume a wide variety of positions in government, universities, and medical and industrial institutions.

Key courses: BIOL 300, BIOL 301, BIOL 303, BIOL 373, BIOL 569; CHEM 203 or CHEM 204 combined with CHEM 214, CHEM 212, CHEM 222.

Other suggested courses: BIOL 313, BIOL 314, BIOL 316, BIOL 370, BIOL 416, BIOL 466, BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, BIOL 518, BIOL 520, BIOL 524, BIOL 544, BIOL 546.

Nervous systems are perhaps the most complex entities in the natural world, being composed of up to trillions of interconnected cells that must operate in a coordinated manner to produce behaviour that can range from the mundane (e.g., regulation of heart rate) to the magnificent (e.g., musical composition). The neurobiology discipline, one of the fastest growing areas of modern biology, seeks to understand the evolution, development, and operation of nervous systems. The neurobiology concentration addresses these issues by examining neural structure, function, and development at levels of organization that range from the molecular to the organismal. As a result of exposure to a wide range of experimental and intellectual approaches, students receive a sound, broadly based education in biology.

Key courses: BIOL 306, BIOL 320, BIOL 373, BIOL 389, BIOL 507, BIOL 514, BIOL 530, BIOL 532, BIOL 580, BIOL 588.

Other suggested courses: ANAT 321, ANAT 322, BIOL 300, BIOL 303, BIOL 466, BIOL 467, BIOL 468D1/D2, BIOL 469D1/D2, NEUR 310, NSCI 200, NSCI 201, PHAR 562, PHGY 311, PHGY 314, PHGY 425, PHGY 451, PHGY 556, PSYC 311, PSYC 318, PSYC 342, PSYC 410, PSYC 470, PSYT 455, PSYT 500.