This case study describes a practical exercise developed for students in the School of Geography and Environmental Science at Monash University. The exercise is based around simple bioclimatic modelling techniques and designed for first-year university students of biogeography, ecology and climatology. It incorporates aspects of past, present and future climates and their impact on species distributions, particularly in Victoria, but could be easily modified to suit any part of Australia. The practical exercise has three main parts: the first is on animal distributions under current and future climates; the second concerns plant distributions in the past and present; and the third part looks at how rare and endangered species may respond to future climate change in alpine environments.

This course is an advanced treatment of biochemical mechanisms that underlie biological processes. Topics include macromolecular machines such as the ribosome, the proteasome, fatty acid synthases as a paradigm for polyketide synthases and non-ribosomal polypeptide synthases, and polymerases. Emphasis will be given to the experimental methods used to unravel how these processes fit into the cellular context as well as the coordinated regulation of these processes.

This video segment from Evolution: "Extinction!" shows the impact of invasive species on native ecosystems.

Biology is designed for multi-semester biology courses for science majors. It is grounded on an evolutionary basis and includes exciting features that highlight careers in the biological sciences and everyday applications of the concepts at hand. To meet the needs of today’s instructors and students, some content has been strategically condensed while maintaining the overall scope and coverage of traditional texts for this course. Instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom. Biology also includes an innovative art program that incorporates critical thinking and clicker questions to help students understand—and apply—key concepts.

A systematic study of the structure, function, ecology and evolution or organisms including bacteria, protists, fungi, plants and animals.
Chapter I. Evolution and the Origin of Species
Chapter II. The Evolution of Populations
Chapter III. Viruses
Chapter IV. Prokaryotes: Bacteria and Archaea
Chapter V. Protists
Chapter VI. Fungi
Chapter VII. Introduction to Animal Diversity
Chapter VIII. Invertebrates
Chapter IX. Vertebrates
Chapter X. Plant Form and Physiology
Chapter XI. Plant Reproduction
Chapter XII. The Animal Body: Basic Form and Function
Chapter XIII. Animal Nutrition and the Digestive System
Chapter XIV. The Nervous System
Chapter XV. Sensory Systems
Chapter XVI. The Endocrine System
Chapter XVII. The Musculoskeletal System
Chapter XVIII. The Respiratory System
Chapter XIX. The Circulatory System
Chapter XX. Osmotic Regulation and Excretion
Chapter XXI. The Immune System
Chapter XXII. Animal Reproduction and Development
Chapter XXIII. Ecology and the Biosphere
Chapter XXIV. Population and Community Ecology
Chapter XXV. Ecosystems
Chapter XXVI. Conservation Biology and Biodiversity

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Classify fungi into the five major phylaDescribe each phylum in terms of major representative species and patterns of reproduction

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Describe the role that protists play in the ecosystemDescribe important pathogenic species of protists

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Identify new technologies for describing biodiversityExplain the legislative framework for conservationDescribe principles and challenges of conservation preserve designIdentify examples of the effects of habitat restorationDiscuss the role of zoos in biodiversity conservation

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Define biodiversityDescribe biodiversity as the equilibrium of naturally fluctuating rates of extinction and speciationIdentify historical causes of high extinction rates in Earth’s history

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Identify significant threats to biodiversityExplain the effects of habitat loss, exotic species, and hunting on biodiversityIdentify the early and predicted effects of climate change on biodiversity

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Compare innate and learned behaviorDiscuss how movement and migration behaviors are a result of natural selectionDiscuss the different ways members of a population communicate with each otherGive examples of how species use energy for mating displays and other courtship behaviorsDifferentiate between various mating systemsDescribe different ways that species learn

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Discuss the predator-prey cycleGive examples of defenses against predation and herbivoryDescribe the competitive exclusion principleGive examples of symbiotic relationships between speciesDescribe community structure and succession

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Describe how life history patterns are influenced by natural selectionExplain different life history patterns and how different reproductive strategies affect species’ survival

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Describe how ecologists measure population size and densityDescribe three different patterns of population distributionUse life tables to calculate mortality ratesDescribe the three types of survivorship curves and relate them to specific populations

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Give examples of how the carrying capacity of a habitat may changeCompare and contrast density-dependent growth regulation and density-independent growth regulation, giving examplesGive examples of exponential and logistic growth in wild animal populationsDescribe how natural selection and environmental adaptation leads to the evolution of particular life-history patterns

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Define species and describe how species are identified as differentDescribe genetic variables that lead to speciationIdentify prezygotic and postzygotic reproductive barriersExplain allopatric and sympatric speciationDescribe adaptive radiation