The first packet includes an extended syllabus, original readings, lab write-ups, and copies of last year s exams. You should purchase this packet. Three assignments are due at the time shown in the syllabus. There will be far too much to learn ALL about vertebrates, so focus vertebrate evolution and development, and on connections between vertebrate evolution and development. . We can think of vertebrates as being different from one another in a Darwinian sense, because of natural selection and the adaptations of each species.
Vertebrates have complex bodies, which they acquire through development.
We hope that your term paper will focus on an aspect of this question. Studying the evolution of development merges two fields evolutionary and developmental biology. Evo-devo is a short hand for this synthesis, currently of much interest to biologists, with new information accumulating at a great rate. Vertebrates are familiar creatures. This is no news to you as evidenced by your success on our teddy bear self test.