For all groups
- Evolutionary history and relatedness to other organisms
- Feeding strategy/nutritional mode
- Lifestyle (sessile, motile, aquatic, terrestrial, etc)
- Type of body symmetry (in animals), and basic body plan
- Any major groups that were presented in lecture
- Review the end of chapter materials in the Invertebrate and Vertebrate chapters in the Campbell textbook.
Fungi
- What is a fungus?
- How many times did multicellularity evolve?
- Know the structures that are present in fungi. What is a mushroom? Hyphae? Mycelium?
- How do fungi reproduce? What is the ploidy level of spores?
- Understand the fungal pathogens and parasites presented in lecture.
- How do humans benefit from fungi? What about mutualisms with other organisms?
Porifera & Cnidaria
- What are the main characteristics of all animals?
- Know the cell types that sponges exhibit. What is the significance of choanocytes?
- What is the significance of germ layers? How many do sponges possess? Cnidarians? Other animals?
- Understand polyp and medusa forms
- What are cnidocytes and nematocysts?
Lophotrochozoa
- What are the characteristics of Platyhelminthes?
- What are the characteristics of Mollusks?
- Which animals are the first to exhibit segmentation, and what is the evolutionary significance?
- What are the characteristics of Annelids?
Ecdysozoa
- What is the defining characteristic of this group of animals?
- Which group was the first to colonize terrestrial environments?
- Know the characteristics of Nematodes.
- How many species of Arthropods have been described? Which group is the most diverse?
- Know the four major lineages
- What is the significance of an exoskeleton and jointed appendages?
- Why don’t spiders get stuck in their webs?
- Which arachnids in our local area are potentially dangerous?
- Which group of arthropods has wings? What is the evolutionary significance?
Echinoderms
What is a deuterostome? What characteristics define this group?- Understand the function of the water vascular system
- How does the symmetry of larvae differ from adults?
Fishes
- Which chordate groups are invertebrate?
- Know the defining chordate characters.
- Know the derived characters of vertebrates
Transition to Land
- What is a tetrapod?
- Which characteristics were favored by natural selection to make the transition to land
- Understand the transitional fossils presented in lecture, and the adaptations that occurred along the way.
- What is the significance of Tiktaalik. Which traits did they share with fish? With tetrapods?
- What is an amphibian? What are their defining characteristics?
- What is an amniote? What is the significance of the amniotic egg?
- What other adaptations do amniotes exhibit that help them be better adapted to life on land?
- How can you differentiate between rattlesnakes and gopher snakes?
- How can you differentiate between crocodiles and alligators?
- Why is “reptile” an awkward term, scientifically speaking?
- Understand the controversy regarding the taxonomic placement of turtles.
FINAL LECTURE NOTES COMING SOON