Topic 1: Population Ecology. Quantitative approaches to the parameters of populations, their growth and distribution. Biology 384K (Topic 1) and Zoology 384L (Topic 1: Population Ecology) may not both be counted. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 2: Ornithology. Behavior and ecology of birds, with emphasis on recent developments in the field. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 3: Herpetology. Classification, speciation, morphological adaptations, mode of life, history, and ecology of amphibians and reptiles; emphasis on recent advances in the field. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 4: Ichthyology. Evolution and ecology of fishes. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 5: Entomology. Survey of original publications, research methods, and recent developments in the field, with emphasis on taxonomy, insecticides and repellants, and the role of insects in disease transmission. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 6: Invertebrate Zoology. Study of the physiological ecology of animals, with emphasis on the invertebrates. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 7: Animal Behavior. Causal basis, ontogeny, adaptive significance, and evolution of behavior patterns in animals. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 8: Environment and Evolution. The role of environment in shaping populations and communities, with emphasis on terrestrial vertebrate animals and terrestrial communities. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 9: Community and Ecosystem Ecology. Study of the ecological processes that produce and bring about change in the functional structure of communities: dispersal, colonization, population growth, competition. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 10: Ecological Studies in a Tropical-Temperate Transition. Survey of the variety of habitats along a transect from southeastern Texas to southwestern Tamaulipas, from the standpoint of experimental field ecology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 11: Ecological and Historical Biogeography. Study of geographic assemblages of organisms, of ecological factors governing distributions, and of historical factors producing differences between ecologically similar regions. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 12: Mathematical Ecology. An introduction to the mathematical methods and models used in current ecological theory. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 13: Aquatic Entomology. A guide to the taxonomy of aquatic insects and to their use in biomonitoring. Only one of the following may be counted: Biology 321L, 370C (Topic: Applied Aquatic Entomology), 384K (Topic 13). Two lecture hours and three laboratory hours a week for one semester.

Topic 14: Advanced Systematics. Survey of systematic theory and methods, with emphasis on molecular phylogenetics and computational methods. Three lecture hours and three laboratory hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Biology 458L or the equivalent or consent of instructor.

Topic 15: Insect-Plant Relationships. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 16: Molecular Evolution. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 17: Behavioral Ecology. Advanced topics in behavioral ecology, considering the following in detail: animal communication, altruism, sexual selection, plant-animal interactions. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 18: Biomechanics and Vertebrate Functional Morphology. Functional analysis of organismal design in ecological and evolutionary contexts. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 19: Natural Resource Management. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 20: Recent Advances in Computational Biology. Discussion of current scientific papers, methods, and ideas in computational biology and bioinformatics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 21: Recent Advances in Ecology and Systematics. Discussion of recent scientific papers and their contributions to modern work in systematic and environmental zoology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 22: Advanced Topics in Microbial Ecology. Discussion of current scientific ideas and controversies in microbial ecology, including community and ecosystem perspectives. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 23: Invasion Ecology. Overview of the study of biological invasions by nonnative species. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 24: Coevolution. Explores the reciprocal evolutionary interactions between species (mutualism, symbiosis, predator-prey, herbivore-host, pathogen-host interactions), within-species interactions (male-female or parent-offspring) as well as interactions between several coevolving partners. Three lecture hours and one discussion hour a week for one semester.

Topic 25: Ecological and Evolutionary Genetics. Introduction to quantitative genetic theory and approaches, with emphasis on experimental methods and analysis. Focuses on current subjects including natural selection, response to selection, genetic constraints, evolvability, local adaptation, linkage mapping, and quantitative trait locus and association mapping. Three lecture hours a week for one semester

Topic 26: Research Proposal Design and Writing. Designed for students preparing grant proposals or postdoctoral grant applications. Students write proposals and submit them to a funding agency. Three lecture hours and one discussion hour per week for one semester.

Topic 27: Python Programming for Biology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 28: The Comparative Method: Evolution, Ecology, and Phylogeny. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 29: Recent Advances in Population Ecology. Seminar course; some written assignments required. Faculty- and student-led discussions of current subjects in population ecology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division ecology course (Biology 373 or similar course).

Topic 30: Recent Advances in Community Ecology. Seminar course. Faculty- and student-led lectures and discussions of current topics in community ecology. Some written assignments required. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division ecology course (Biology 373 or similar course) required.

Topic 31: Recent Advances in Ecosystem Ecology. Seminar course. Faculty- and student-led lectures and discussions of current topics in ecosystem ecology. Some written assignments required. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division ecology course (Biology 373 or similar course).

Topic 32: Recent Advances in Macroecology. Examines recent ideas and new findings in the fields of Macroecology, Biogeography, and Ecosystem Science. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 33: Recent Advances in Conservation Biology. Seminar course. Faculty- and student-led discussions of current topics in population ecology. Some written assignments may be required. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division ecology course (Biology 373 or similar course); undergraduate upper-division evolution course recommended.

Topic 34: Recent Advances in Microbial Ecology. Explores current subjects and controversies in microbial ecology, including community and ecosystem perspectives. Includes faculty- and student-led discussions of primary literature. Some written assignments required. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 35: Global Environmental Change. Explores the knowledge of current environmental change and biological responses, efforts to understand and predict changes in the future through both experimental manipulations and models. Discussion of the scientific philosophy behind this work. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division ecology course (Biology 373 or similar course); undergraduate upper-division evolution course recommended.

Topic 36: Recent Advances in Evolution. Examines recent and classic research and primary literature concerning general subjects within evolutionary biology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division evolution course (Biology 370 or similar course).

Topic 37: Recent Advances in Coevolution. Examines current and classic literature related to the coevolution of interacting species, including but not limited to host-parasite interactions, and mutualistic interactions. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 38: Recent Advances in Ecological and Evolutionary Genetics. Discussion and analysis of current and classic literature related to ecological and evolutionary genetics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 39: Phylogenetic Perspectives in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior. Theory, methods, and applications of phylogenetics in ecology, evolution, and behavior. The development of phylogenetics; the various phylogenetic optimality criteria and their advantages and disadvantages (include non-parametric, semi-parametric, and parametric methods); models of evolution for molecular and morphological data; algorithms and heuristics for searching solution space, including discussion of Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo approaches; phylogenetic simulation; statistical assessment of phylogenetic results; molecular clocks; and major applications of phylogenetics. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 40: Recent Advances in Biogeography and Phylogeography. Reviews concepts and recent literature in Biogeography, Phylogeography, or Macroecology. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 41: Recent Advances in Molecular and Genomic Evolution. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Additional prerequisite: Undergraduate upper-division evolution course (Biology 370 or similar course).

Topic 42: Human and Primate Evolutionary Genetics. Anthropology 388 (Topic: Human/Primate Evolut Genetics) and Biology 384K (Topic 42) may not both be counted. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 43: Ancient and Environmental DNA. Explores the prospects and challenges of ancient/environmental DNA research, and considers the applications in evolutionary biology, paleontology, and anthropology. Only one of the following may be counted: Anthropology 388 (Topic: Ancient DNA) Biology 384K (Topic: Ancient DNA), 384K (Topic 43). Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 44: Recent Advances in Behavior. Explores recent and classic research and primary literature concerning general topics within behavioral ecology, and the evolution of behavior. Three lecture hours a week for one semester.

Topic 45: Seminars in Brain Behavior and Evolution. Explores how to give a seminar and/or writing a grant proposal. Preparation for job talks, paper presentations, or writing grants.