Ornithology Laboratory

Catalog description

Prerequisites: BIOL 4402 (may be taken concurrently), or consent of instructor. This course will introduce students to methods of identifying and studying birds. Labs will almost entirely be comprised of field trips to local areas and will emphasize diversity of birds, adaptions shown by different groups, and means of identification, particularly of birds found in Missouri. Field projects will focus on techniques for censusing birds, sampling foraging behavior, and studying habitat selection. Indoor periods will cover internal and external anatomy of birds. Slides and field trips to the St Louis Zoo will be used to survey the diversity of birds worldwide. Three and one-half hours of laboratory per week. Longer (e.g., Saturday) field trips will be made when appropriate.