Offered by the Department of Zoology and Environment Sciences
The courses offered under the Zoology Honours Degree in the third and fourth years of the BSc programme are multidisciplinary in nature and is a coalition of many applied fields of zoology such as conservation biology, ecotoxicology, aquaculture and fisheries, parasitology and molecular biology, all of which are designed to provide a more practical and integrative approach to studying the wide scope of topics embodied in the subject. These courses are built upon the range of fundamental courses offered in the first two years of study.
The special degree courses have intense field and laboratory components which introduces students to a wide variety of advanced tools that are used in novel and emerging sub disciplines of applied zoology. The residential field workshops focus on imparting hands-on experience and familiarizes students with currently used techniques, procedures and approaches for biodiversity assessment and monitoring, protecting wildlife and their habitats and for resolving and mitigating pressing environmental issues. In the fourth year, students have the opportunity to conduct research projects on a topic of their choice, many of which involve multiple supervisors from within the department and from outside institutions. The student-centered teaching, learning and assessment approaches foster creativity and analytical and critical thinking. The wholesome experience gained in a multitude of sub disciplines would no doubt increase employability the Zoology Honours graduates and enhance their capacity to become leading scientists.
Degree Aims
- Use specific examples to elucidate how traits in morphology, physiology, life history, and behavior in animals is shaped through evolutionary processes.
- Make comparative analyses of how organisms' function at the level of cells, tissues and organ systems.
- Explicate the ecological interconnectedness of biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems and apply ecological principles/concepts for conserving species and their habitats.
- Be skilled in animal handling, conducting biodiversity assessments and monitoring, barcoding and phylogenetic analyses, and using GIS techniques etc. and also be able to use these as tools for the management of species and habitats.
- Identify human and animal parasites and their hosts, and know the basics of managing emerging vector borne diseases.
- Apply scientific knowledge in various sub disciplines of zoology such as in the fields of aquaculture, integrated pest management and the management of problem animals.
- Have the capacity to apply scientific methods to address issues relating to animals, and the environment in general, by formulating research questions and hypotheses and gathering and analyzing relevant data for testing these hypotheses.
- Design laboratory or field experiments, to collect and analyze biological or ecological data, and make meaningful interpretations.
Entry Requirements
To be eligible for this programme, a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 for the core courses in the first and second years.
(Core Courses: ZL 1009 Evolution and Biogeography, ZL 1008 Variety of Animal Life, ZL 1010 Animal Behaviour, ZL 2010 Animal Form and Function, ZL 2009 Principles of Ecology Biosystematics, ZL 2011 Biosystematics)
Course Modules
(L – No. of Lecture hours, P – No. of Practical hours)
Semester I
| Course Code | Title | No. of Credits | No. of Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZL 3050 | Applications of Molecular Biology | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 3051 | Introduction to Immunology | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 3052 | Mammalogy | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 3011 | Fish Biology, Fisheries and Aquaculture | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 3053 | Species vulnerability risk assessment | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 3054 | Evolutionary Biology | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 3055 | Invertebrate Zoology | 1C | 15L |
| ZL 3017 | Applied biotechnology | 1C | 15L |
Semester II
| Course Code | Title | No. of Credits | No. of Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZL 3069 | Fundamentals of Conservation Biology and Wildlife Management | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 3056 | Management of biological collections | 2C | 60P |
| ZL 3057 | Comparative Physiology | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 3060 | Fundamentals of Parasitology | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 3075 | Ecotoxicology | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 3080 | Bioethics | 1C | 15L |
Level 4
Semester I
| Course Code | Title | No. of Credits | No. of Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZL 4060 | Developmental Biology | 2C | 30L |
| ZL 4051 | Research methods, project development & statistics | 2C | 30L |
| ZL 4053 | Research Projects in Zoology | 8C | 240P |
| ZL 4055 | Principles of Oceanography | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 4056 | Guided Reading and Essay | 2C | 60P |
| ZL 4064 | Parasitology | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 4057 | Entomology | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 4059 | Ornithology | 2C | 15L 30P |
| ZL 4067 | Herpetology | 1C | 15L |
Semester II
| Course Code | Title | No. of Credits | No. of Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZL 4068 | Wildlife Ecology & Management | 3C | 30L 30P |
| ZL 4069 | Ex situ conservation: Principles and practice | 2C | 15L 30P |