Zoology Menu and Links

Helpful Links

Welcome to the Zoology Menu and Links page. These links are provided as additional information to go along with the topics covered on my website. At the time of this posting, the links are all in working order, but if you come across one that doesn't work, please contact me at WWDD. This page was originally found on another website, which has subsequently been handed over to me. The content found on this site was not written by me, but I have edited some of the original content (i.e. updated links, etc.) as appropriate. My special thanks goes to Bob Patterson, the original author of this page, who graciously allowed me to use his content.

Major Zoological Resources

The original source for the taxonomic classes presented on the following sites within this page, used by the original author Bob Patterson, are no longer available as a free resource online. They were originally based on the Zoological Record, provided by Thomson BIOSIS, and are now available through subscription service. Below these internal links are sites elsewhere online that provide far more in depth information.

Protoctista - Unicellular Eukaryotes
Metazoa - Multicellular Invertebrates
Corals, Sea Anemones and Jellyfish
Molluscs, Cephalopods, Bivalves
Arthropods
Hemichordates
Starfish and cousins
Chordates
1. Vertebrates
  1. Fish-like Groups
  2. Fish
  3. Amphibians
  4. Reptiles
  5. Birds
  6. Mammals

Online Encyclopedia of Life

This database holds information on over 50,000 species, from humpback whale to eastern hemlock, with endangered status, distribution, life history, and references.

World Biodiversity Database

Already boasts entries for some 200,000 species of plants, fungi, animals, bacteria, and protists, drawing from 39 taxonomic surveys and projects on groups such as marine mammals, sea cucumbers, and the orchids of New Guinea.

Some Oceanic Life Forms

Antarctic Ocean Wildlife

Zoom in on the delicately ribbed plankton filter and compound eyes of krill and a species of amphipod. Also see this Underwater Field Guide describing a whole menagerie of animals and plants, from sponges to jellyfish to diatoms.

Diatoms

With their delicate, ornate cell walls made of silicon dioxide, the aquatic protists called diatoms rival the work of the world's best jewelers. Sift through a taxonomic databases and other resources of the California Academy of Sciences, whose glass menagerie includes more than 59,000 samples.

Oceanlink

Find answers to over 550 questions about marine biology; from seaweed to sharks, whales to whelks, and marine pollution to oceanography. Topics include Northwest Pacific Biodiversity, Tides, Animals, The Deep Sea, Marine Food Webs, Underwater Acoustics, an Intertidal Field Guide, and more.

Plankton Image Database

Photo gallerys of zooplankton, phytoplankton and microzooplankton.

Protozoa

Microbes were the only living things for most of the history of the Earth. Over 3.5 billion years ago they began the process of transforming this planet, making it habitable for those who came later. This site has images of microbes, classification schemes, descriptions of organisms, talks and other educational resources.

Single-celled Organisms

Natural History of the Archaea

Although few people are aware of them, the Archaea are among the most fascinating organisms on earth.

The World of Algae

The World of Algae is an excellent resource for taxonomy, courses of study, picture galleries, toxic qualities and food values. Learn about kelp forests, fossils and red tides.

Corals, Sea Anemones and Jellyfish

Cnidaria Home Page

Jellyfish Junction offerings range from genetic information and research methods, to pretty cnidarian photos and a discussion forum. Users can look up the genes involved in intercellular signal transduction and even tips on storing cnidaria in ethanol for DNA analysis.

Florida Pioneers Coral Recovery

Two hundred sea urchins are being released into the Atlantic off the Florida Keys, in an attempt to save coral reefs. Scientists hope the sea creatures will restore the health of coral by feeding on algae that smother the reefs.

Hexacorallians of the World

Contains a trove of information on the distribution and taxonomy of sea anemones, corals, and related gelatinous creatures, collectively known as hexacorals. The site holds entries for more than 1800 species, and is part of the larger website Biogeoinformatics of Hexacorals.

Worms

Annelid Resources: Another can of Worms

Annelid Resources: Another can of Worms on the Internet includes Phylogeny of the Annelida and Allies.

Polychaete Identification

British Museum (taxonomy, zoology). Taxonomic key and illustrations.

Molluscs

The Cephalopods

Octopuses, Squid, Cuttlefish, Nautilus. A great website -- fun to use and informative.

Phylum Mollusca

Molluscs are an extremely diverse group of organisms. Over 50,000 living species have been named, making Mollusca second only to the Phylum Arthropoda in number of species known.

Echinoderms (Starfish and Friends)

Echinoid Home Page

Spiny sea urchins and disk-shaped sand dollars are invertebrates with an intricate skeleton composed of plates. There are ~800 species around the world, with fossils going back 450 million years. Identification keys and 200+ taxonomic pages, many with detailed photos, cover 12 of the 76 echinoid families.

Phylum Echinodermata

(sea lilies, sea urchins, sea cucumbers)

Arthropods

Children's Butterfly Site

A great website by Paul Opler. See also Butterflies of North America, an online atlas. Photos, county checklists, and details about the feeding habits, migration, and conservation status of nearly 750 Lepidoptera species. State coordinators will help identify specimens. Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center also has Web atlases of North American moths, dragonflies, and mayflies.

CyberBeeNet

BeeCalendar, BeeResearch, BeeStats, CyberBeeBook, BeeSearch, CoolBeeLinks.

Ecological Database of the World's Insect Pathogens

With an eye to improving biocontrol of pests and sparking research on potential risks, researchers at the University of Illinois compiled this global database of arthropod pathogens. The records, which cover nearly 8500 kinds of pathogens and more than 4100 hosts, allow you to identify which type of bug is known to attack a particular species of arthropod.

Fire Ant Research

Entomologists from 11 southern states are cooperating in a project to introduce the fire ant pathogen, Thelohania solenopsae, into red, black or hybrid fire ant populations.

Firefly flashes and Nitric Oxide

Want to learn how fireflies work? See a photo of a female Photuris sp. ready to devour a prey male. These femmes fatales use flash signals to lure in males of other species by imitating their females' flash patterns. Those sneaky beasties, flashing for dinner!

Japanese Ants Color Image Database: Home

Myrmecology, Ant Taxonomics and lots of photos.

Mites and Ticks

Don't look now, but something is creeping through your eyebrows: tiny mites that even a shower won't dislodge. Although the denizens of your eyebrows are benign, other kinds of mites suck the life out crops. The varroa mite, a recent invader from Asia, has devastated beehives across the United States.

Moths of North America

Among the handy resources are county-by-county range maps, species checklists for the lower 48 states, and distribution data for northern Mexico. Having trouble identifying a specimen? Illustrated accounts profile more than 100 common species and can help you pin down the name of your catch.

Phylum Arthropoda

Arthropods include an incredibly diverse group of taxa such as insects, crustaceans, spiders, scorpions, and centipedes. There are far more species of arthropods than in all other phyla combined.

Scarab Beetles

Scarabs account for about 10% of the world's 350,000 beetle species. This illustrated guide to 23 New World scarab families and subfamilies offers detailed physical descriptions and information on taxonomy, distribution, ecology, and larval forms. Includes an identification key and glossary.

SE Arizona butterflies

This website contains figures for all the 270 (plus) species recorded for Southern Arizona.

Smithsonian Databases in Entomology

The back rooms of museums are often loaded with treasures known only to staff. Here's your chance to rummage through some of the Smithsonian's insect and other entomology holdings, courtesy of its National Museum of Natural History's department of systematic entomology. The Entomology Illustration Archive contains at present over 200 nice illustrations.

Tardigrades

The tardigrade, sometimes called water bear or moss piglet, is a microscopic organism, of arthropod-like appearance, but so physiologically unusual it has a phylum all its own.

World of Copepods

Bibliography with 39,000 references dating back to 1600. Search a list of all known copepod scientific names or the database of 5000 type specimens held by the museum. The Copepods Web Portal lists Italian copepods and reviews some of the groups of copepods that inhabit groundwater.

Fish

Cichlid Fishes of Lake Malawi

Naturalists were amazed to find scores of fish species that were closely related yet varied wildly in size, color, and eating habits. Find out more about these wonders of evolution, taxonomic lists of Lake Malawi's roughly 335 cichlids, along with hundreds of photos.

Class Actinopterygii

(bony fish, osteichthyes, ray finned fish, spiny rayed fish)

Class Chondrichthyes

(cartilaginous fishes: sharks, rays, chimaeras)

Coelecanth: The Fish Out of Time

Once thought to have gone extinct with the dinosaurs, the Coelacanth was "discovered" alive and well in 1938. Read all about it - including the latest efforts to protect the creature.

FISH ON LINE

This guide provides a structure and case study material for a computer-based course in ichthyology for upper undergraduate and graduates students in biology or environmental science. The key aspects of ichthyology are presented in five chapters covering Evolution and classification; Morphology and biodiversity; Reproduction; Physiology; and Fishes as part of ecosystems.

Ichthyology at the Australian Museum

The ornate ghostpipefish must be one of the most unfishlike fish alive, with its tubular body and spiky, pawlike appendages. Catch a glimpse of this and many more unusual fish at the Australian Museum Fish Site. Although it's targeted to experts, others may want to check out the many entries illustrated with beautiful drawings from the original publications.

Ichthyology Web Resources

The site is well stocked with links on fish anatomy, behavior, systematics, distribution, biodiversity, etc., from Fishbase, an online catalog, to a how-to on determining the age of a cod.

Otolith Research from Nova Scotia

To learn the life histories of their slippery subjects, fisheries scientists pull out the animals' otoliths -- small ear bones with microscopic growth rings. The otoliths' shape and elemental content reveal everything from a fish's species and age to its migratory wanderings.

Shark Research Program at the University of Florida Museum of Natural History

In the Image Gallery you'll find a wide variety of shark photographs and the works of several skilled scientific illustrators. Shark attack files, population studies, conservation programs.

Xiphophorus Fishes

A freshwater fish genus comprised of 22 species, these fishes live in eastern drainages in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras, with most of the described species living in Mexico. The taxa make up 3 groups, the Northern Swordtails, the Southern Swordtails and the Platyfish.

Amphibians

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation

This website is the online version of the magazine sharing the same name. IT contains technical articles concerning the welfare of amphibians and reptiles worldwide.

AmphibiaWeb

AmphibiaWeb offers ready access to taxonomic information for every recognized species of amphibian in the world. Species descriptions, life history information, conservation status, literature references, photos and range maps are available for many species and are being added to regularly by specialists and volunteers from around the world.

Class Lissamphibia

Species from the following Orders are available in the Animal Diversity Web: Gymnophiona, Caudata and Anura.

Savannah River Ecology Lab: Reptiles and Amphibians

The University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL) has been an important center for extensive and intensive herpetological research since 1967. The herpetology program's major emphasis has been the generation of high quality research involving amphibians and reptiles.

Reptiles

Class Reptilia

Testudines (turtles), Rhynchocephalia (Australian lizards), Squamata (snakes and lizards), Crocodilia (alligators and crocodiles).

Crocodilians: Natural History & Conservation

Illustrated with range maps and photos, the site describes the physical characteristics, favorite haunts, and breeding habits of all 23 species of crocodilians. There's also plenty of information on the basic biology, taxonomy, and conservation status.

Phylogeny of Turtles

Turtles are survivors that have endured catastrophes like the demise of the dinosaurs amd the ice ages. Offers information on the anatomy, fossil history, and evolution of these reptiles.

Birds

A.O.U. Names for North American Birds

The history of American bird names since 1886, show each change by the American Ornithologists' Union of Latin or English names. Includes brief explanations for some of the reasoning behind the Linnaean naming system.

Birds and Mammals of Latin America & Caribbean

Lists over 5500 species and includes info on endangered status, distribution maps, and scientific and common names in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Class Aves

Birds are vertebrates with feathers, modified for flight and for active metabolism. Birds are a monophyletic lineage, evolved once from a common ancestor, and related through that common origin.

Digital Recordings from Nature!

Bird, Insect and other animal sounds. North American and Costa Rican birds. Also Bats, Whales, Squirrels and Rattlesnakes.

New Bird Species in USA

New Gunnison Sage Grouse identified through genetics. It's vocalization is different, too.

Tiny Gnatcatcher Poses Big Conundrum

A study of DNA from the threatened California gnatcatcher and the abundant Baja (Mexico) gnatcatcher has shown no differences that would place the two birds in different subspecies. Therefore, destroying the California bird's habitat through development will not threaten the species, or any subspecies, as a whole.

Mammals

African Elephant Is Two Species'

Researchers say there is genetic evidence to show that Africa's elephants form two separate species. The difference between the two is more than half the genetic distinction between African and Asian elephants.

Bats Revealed as Bird Killers

A rare kind of European bat regularly feasts on birds, surprised biologists have discovered. And they suspect that the large bats are capable of hunting down the birds in flight, something no researcher has ever seen.

Cetacea

Bone up on your knowledge of whales, dolphins, and porpoises at Cetacea.org, a collection of backgrounders on all 81 known species of cetaceans. The streamlined accounts deliver the basics on appearance, classification, behavior, food, and habitat.

Class Mammalia

All mammals share three characteristics not found in other animals: 3 middle ear bones; hair; and the production of milk by modified sweat glands called mammary glands.

Duck-Billed Platypus Facts

Little is known about the ancestry of the platypus. But fossils have been found that seem to show that the platypus had ancestors which had similar attributes. It is suggested that the platypus developed as a result of therian mammals (metatherians and eutherians) diverging over 180 million years ago.

Endangered Species Cloned

Some researchers believe cloning may offer the only way to save species from extinction. But conservationists argue there is little point if the reasons for the animals' decline, such as habitat loss, have not been addressed first.

New Help for Threatened Bats

Scientists say almost half the world's bat species face some degree of threat to their survival and that populations in many countries are experiencing alarming declines. Bat Conservation International and Bat Conservation Trust are to organization to check out.

Panda Clone Could Save Species

Chinese scientists say they have successfully produced an embryo clone of a giant panda, and are hoping that it will now develop to maturity. They are hailing it as a possible breakthrough in their efforts to save one of the world's most endangered species.

The Primates

All of the ~300 or more species of primates are classified into one taxonomic order because they are mammals with close evolutionary roots. The exact number of living primate species may not be known. Every few years new ones are found. In fact, a team of scientists has discovered Three New Species of Mouse Lemurs, the world’s smallest primates, living in the endangered forests of Madagascar.

Primate Brain Information System

For neuroscientists baffled by the many alternative names given to similar central nervous system structures in different species, BrainInfo offers welcome relief. The site sorts out 6500 names and synonyms for about 860 structures and gathers information on them from various databases.

Primates in Print

Need to find the most recent studies on the social life of the Philippine tarsier, a bug-eyed, spindly-fingered primate dwelling in that country's tropical rainforests? How about Jane Goodall's early papers on nest building in wild chimpanzees? This is a well-stocked bibliography of primate books, papers, reports, abstracts, and dissertations.

Tapir Gallery

Get oriented with species accounts that cover the range, habits, and distinguishing marks of the four living species, which inhabit tropical areas of Asia and Central and South America. The well-stocked pictures section contains snapshots along with artwork and other images.

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