Animal Sensory Systems, Neurobiology and Behaviour

Description

The evolutionary and comparative approach to the study of natural behavior and its underlying mechanistic control by the nervous system endeavours to understand how the central nervous system translates biologically relevant stimuli into behaviour.

This multidisciplinary field, i.e. Neuroethology, is comprised of neurobiology (the study of the nervous system) and ethology (the study of natural behavior).

This module will introduce students to the general principles of neuroethology, i.e. the neural base of behaviour and sensory systems.

Topics include:

• Comparative neurobiology (structure/organisation of nervous systems)
• Biological timekeeping (rhythm generation mechanisms; neural and behavioural rhythms)
• Sensory biology (vision, hearing, taste and smell) and sensory ecology (environmental adaptations of sensory systems)
• Neural and hormonal control of homeostasis (neuroendocrine system; autonomous nervous system)
• Learning and behaviour (associative learning; cognition; complex natural behaviour)

Delivery

• 25 hours lectures
• 14 hours workshops/practicals
• 3 hours tutorials

Assessment

• Coursework 40%
• Unseen Written Exam 60%