Short Course Description
The aim of the course is to introduce the students to the largest and most diverse group of organisms in nature - Class Insecta. It will review the biological and morphological diversity of insects, including the attributes that led to their success and dominance in all terrestrial habitats. Each meeting deals with one or several related insect orders, presents their attributes, their biological, morphological and behavioral diversity, evolution, systematics, and significance to the ecological system and to man. Dominant families and species in Israel and elsewhere will also be presented. All lectures in the course are accompanied by laboratories in which students have the opportunity to observe live insects in order to experience first-hand the way they walk, swim, fly, feed, and produce sounds. The labs also include various demonstrations of preserved specimens and microscope slides. Presence in all class meetings is compulsory, and students who miss more than two meetings for any reason will not be able to complete the course.
Full Syllabus
