Natural History

Track Advisor:

Deborah Smith
debsmith@ku.edu

This curricular emphasis provides broad familiarity with the natural biota and training in the methods for study, preservation, maintenance, and display of biological specimens. The program prepares its graduates for service in museums that require generalized competence in natural history, coupled with basic understanding of the materials, methods, and problems common to museums of diverse kinds. Students seeking specialized skills in particular groups of organisms may wish to supplement this curriculum through intensive course work dealing with the organisms of interest, or may even consider alternate master's or doctoral programs offered in the Division of Biological Sciences and the Department of Geology.

Resources available to this program include extensive collections, exhibits, and public education services in the Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center. Major collections include plants, invertebrate fossils, insects, fossil vertebrates, fishes, amphibians and reptiles, birds, and mammals. The composite holdings in these collections exceed five million specimens.

Exhibits occupy more than 50,000 square feet of space in Dyche, and hallway cases in Lindley Halls. These exhibits are visited by more than 100,000 persons annually, and have been ranked as one of the top ten tourist attractions in Kansas.

Public Education programs of the Museums include lectures, demonstrations, and workshops on various topics, delivered in Lawrence and elsewhere, that serve more than 30,000 persons annually.

Professional biologists who received much of their graduate training in these museums now occupy important curatorial and administrative positions in many university, public, and private museums throughout North America.

Students planning to enroll in the Natural history track should consult with the track advisor prior to enrollment to obtain approval for a plan of study appropriate to their needs and aspirations.

Requirements

Students pursuing the Natural History track will be required to complete 18 credit hours of course work in Natural History, 18 hours of required Museum Studies courses, and 6 hours of internship, distributed as follows:

1. Required Museum Studies courses (18 hours)

2. Required Natural History courses (18 hours)
   
   Each student is required to take 18 credit hours of course work in the subject area of interest and to become proficient in the classification, diversity, biogeography, ecology, and methods of collecting and preparing specimens in the group of organisms of special interest. Representative courses are listed below; students who already have taken introductory courses in these subjects may select more advanced courses. These are listed in the Graduate School Catalog.

   BIOL 500 Biology of Insects (3). Lecture and demonstrations stressing the principles of entomology. Taxonomy, morphology, physiology, behavior, ecology, and importance of insects to man.

   BIOL 502 Biology of Insects, Laboratory (2). Laboratory for BIOL 500.

   BIOL 540 General Invertebrate Zoology (5). Phylogeny, physiology, and embryology of invertebrate animals; evolutionary processes; characteristics of major ecological groupings. Laboratory considers major taxonomic categories with emphasis on functional morphology and evolutionary modifications.

   BIOL 550 Introduction to Systematics (3). Basic elements of systematic theory and practice; discussion of the needs and aims of taxonomy; species and speciation; principles of nomenclature and classification; phylogenetic reconstruction; evolutionary processes and patterns of species diversity; analysis of systematic evidence; construction of keys, synopses, monographs, and revisions.

   BIOL 603 Systematic Botany (3). A lecture/laboratory course providing hands-on experience with plant identification, a history of plant classification, the principles of nomenclature and character analysis, the basis of systematics theory, and a phylogenetically oriented introduction to vascular plant diversity.

   BIOL 610 Plant Kingdom (4). A study of the plant world including major divisions from algae through flowering plants, both living and fossil. Classification, morphology, anatomy, and life cycles. Lectures, laboratory, and field trips.

   BIOL 706 Current Topics in Curation and Collection Management (2). Seminar course to provide students with a working knowledge of the primary issues and current trends in building, administration, and care of scientific collections. Topics include permits, collecting, accessioning, cataloging, preservation, preventive conservation, and access issues. The course format consists of reading, lecture, guest speakers, discussions, and visits to scientific collections on campus.

   BIOL 711 Insect Systematics (4). A study of the diversity of insects, including the classification of all living and fossil orders and the more common families primarily on the basis of external morphology. The biology, ecology, phylogeny, and geological history of each order will be covered. Includes both lectures and laboratory exercises.

   BIOL 720 Scientific Illustration (3). Lectures, demonstrations, and studio participation. Instruction in the preparation of illustrations for scientific publications, theses, and oral and poster presentations. Emphasis on basic drafting and layout skills, and pen and ink and tone renderings intended for publication. Attention given to preparation of photographs for publication and oral presentations. Instruction provided in use of specialized optical equipment for drawing.

   BIOL 746 Principles of Systematics (4). Lectures: historical and philosophical foundations of modern systematics; theory and practice of classifications; character analysis; phylogeny reconstruction; formulation and testing of systematic hypotheses; species concepts and speciation; the interface between systematics and evolutionary theory, particularly the origins of asymmetric diversity patterns, macroevolution, adaptation, coevolution, and the evolution of higher taxa; roles of paleontological, ontogenetic, biochemical, and molecular data in systematics; and biogeography. Laboratory work: practical applications of nomenclature, development of keys, descriptions and systematic revisions, character analysis, phylogeny reconstruction, hypothesis testing, interpretation of biogeographic patterns.

   BIOL 783 Herpetology (3). A study of amphibians and reptiles. This lecture course will explore the taxonomic diversity of amphibians and reptiles, and current areas of active research in herpetology. Topics will be considered within a phylogenetic framework, and include discussion on systematics, biogeography, tetrapod origins, skeletal systems, growth, circulatory system, locomotion, thermal and water regulation, hibernation, ecology, sexual behavior, parental care, and mimicry.

   BIOL 790 Paleontology of Lower Vertebrates (3). General account of the osteology, geological distribution, and evolution of the principal groups of fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and birds. Lectures and laboratory.

   BIOL 791 Paleontology of Higher Vertebrates (3). Evolution of mammals and anatomical modifications involved in the process as ascertained from the fossil record. Lectures and laboratory.

   BIOL 792 Ichthyology (4). A study of fishes. Lecture topics include the structure and function of fishes; the adaptations of fishes to the aquatic environment; and a survey of major fish groups with emphasis on evolutionary relationships and biogeography. Laboratory topics include a survey of fishes using specimens, and the use of keys to identify fishes with emphasis on the Kansas fish fauna. A research paper using primary scientific literature is required

   BIOL 793 Ornithology (3). A study of birds; recognition of species; field and laboratory observations; behavior, phylogeny, and speciation.

   BIOL 794 Mammalogy (3). A study of mammals, with emphasis on systematics, biogeography, and natural history. Lectures, laboratory, and field study.

   BIOL 801 Topics in: _____ (1-3). Advanced courses on special topics in biology, given as need arises. Lectures, discussing readings, laboratory or field work. Students may select sections according to their special interests.

3. Internship (6 hours)
   
   Internship requirements may be satisfied in one or more of the three ways described below. Concurrent enrollment in BIOL 799 Natural History Museum Apprenticeship, is required for a total of 6 credit hours. All apprenticeship projects must be reviewed and approved by the track advisor prior to, and as a prerequisite to, enrollment.
   
   BIOL 799 Natural History Museum Apprenticeship. Provides directed, practical experience in collection care and management, public education, exhibits and administration with emphases to suit the particular requirements of each student. Representative internships are listed below; students are encouraged to work with the track advisor to develop an internship that meets their career goals.

   • Curatorial functions at one of the principal natural history collections of the University--herbarium, paleobotany, entomology, invertebrate paleontology, ichthyology, invertebrate zoology, herpetology, ornithology, mammalogy, or vertebrate paleontology.

   • Development and presentation of one or more public education programs through the Natural History and Biodiversity Research Center, or assistance in the design and construction of exhibits.

   • Supervised project involving one or more of the following functions: exhibits, public education, collection management, specimen preparation, publications, museum administration, membership program, or biological informatics.

4. Master's Examination
   
   Each student must demonstrate mastery of subject disciplines, museum principles and practices through satisfactory performance on written or oral examinations administered by the track advisor and an examination committee of at least three members of the graduate faculty.
   

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