BZ 401 Comparative Animal Physiology [CRN 79576]

Overview of Course

This course explores the remarkable physiological adaptations that allow marine animals to survive in diverse and often challenging environments. Focusing on the organisms we will encounter during our voyage, we will examine how vertebrates and invertebrates digest food, regulate salts and water, excrete wastes, circulate fluids, and respire. By linking physiology to place, students will see how environmental factors such as temperature, salinity, depth, and oxygen availability shape the function and behavior of marine life. Case studies, shipboard observations, and region-specific examples will highlight the elegance and diversity of life in the sea across a wide range of ocean habitats, from estuaries, tidepools and coral reefs to the deep pelagic and benthic realms. Emphasis will be on oceanic organisms and nearshore organisms that inhabit the port environments we will be exploring.