BIO044: General Zoology

Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

Materials:
THE SCIENCE OF ZOOLOGY AND THE BIOLOGICAL Ballpens, erasers, pencils, and module
PRINCIPLES OF LIFE
References:
• Hickman C.P., et al. (2008). Integrated
Lesson Objectives:
Principles of Zoology, 14th Edition.
At the end of the day, you will be able to:
The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
1. Know the history of zoology and the key-figures New York.
who contributed to the science;
2. Define the general properties of life.

Productivity Tip: To most of you, this subject may be your first introduction to the more intermediate level of
biological sciences. It’s understandable that some words might be new to you. If you encounter a word you do
not know, encircle it or write it down in a separate notebook so that you can research it later. It might come in
handy one day.

A. LESSON PREVIEW/REVIEW
Introduction (2 mins)
• Welcome to BIO044: General Zoology!
• For your first lesson, you will be introduced to the science of Zoology and its branches, as well as its
history and the important people who have helped develop it. We will also be defining Life and the
characteristic that define a living organism.

Activity 1: What I Know Chart, part 1 (3 mins)

(For this part, only answer the first column. Please leave the 3rd column blank until you reach Activity 4 of this module.)
What I Know Questions: What I Learned (Activity 4)
1) What is “zoology”?

2) Why is it difficult to
define “life”?

3) How would you

describe a living
organism?

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

B. MAIN LESSON
Activity 2: Content Notes (20 mins)

What is “Zoology”?
Zoology is the scientific study of animal life (Greek zoion = “animal” + logos = “a study”). It
encompasses all scientific knowledge about animals, their embryonic development, evolution, characteristics
and physiology, ecological distribution, and classification.

Zoology is a very old science. In fact, it is as old as man itself, because it was built on centuries of
human inquiry into the animal world. During the prehistoric time, early humans began thinking of animals and
the proof is in cave paintings. By the Neolithic revolution, humans began to learn to domesticate animals as
people became pastoralists and farmers instead of hunter-gatherers.

In Ancient Greece, the great philosopher Aristotle created and first wrote about the science of biology
and was able to classify 540 animal species, but he classified creatures in a ladder or graded scale of perfection,
with plants in the bottom and man at the top. His classification system was considered the standard, until the
12th century AD when a Dominican friar and catholic bishop named Albertus Magnus expanded Aristotle’s
work and wrote the De Animalibus libre XXVI, the most extensive studies of zoological observation. His writings
were considered the most advanced in zoology and natural sciences (until Charles Darwin published his book).

During the Renaissance Era (14th-17th century AD), there was a revival of learning and progress in the
sciences. Many key-figures of biology and zoology became well-known:
• Leonardo de Vinci (1452-1519) – Dissected animals and humans to perfect his art, but also
provided realistic illustrations of animal anatomy.
• Carl von Linnaeus (1707-1778) – “The Father of Modern Taxonomy”; Published Systema
Naturae, a basic taxonomy for the natural world and introduced scientific names for all his
species.
• Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) – Contributed greatly to the advances of microscopy
and was the first to really discover the microbial world and bacteria.
• Robert Hooke (1635-1703) - Best known for discovering the compartments in cork and coining
the term “cells”.

During the Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution (1750-1900), many explorations occurred to gather
or spread knowledge. The biological sciences began to be established during this time with these important
people:

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

• Jean-Baptist Lamarck (1744-1829) – Studied taxonomy but classified things by function rather
than form known as Lamarckism / Inheritance of Acquired Traits / Use-Disuse Hypothesis. His
hypothesis has since been rejected.
• Gregor Johann Mendel (1822-1884) – “The Father of Modern Genetics”; Discovered the
fundamental laws or inheritance, though his work on pea plants.
• Charles Darwin (1809-1889) - A naturalist in the Beagle’s voyage to the Galapagos islands
where he collected a number of specimens and observations, where his theories on evolution
were inspired. He published the most seminal book in all of biology “On the Origin of Species by
Means of Natural Selection”

Towards the modern era, many more contributed to the biological sciences, especially to zoology,
giving rise to many scopes and branches which narrows down its studies.

Why is it difficult to define “life”?

There is no simple definition to define life because its history shows extensive and ongoing change. To
study the origin of life, we must ask how organic molecules acquired the ability for precise replication.

How would you describe a living organism?

Although we cannot force life into a simple definition, we can readily identify the living world through
the general properties or common characteristics of life:
1) Chemical Uniqueness
• Living systems demonstrate a unique and complex molecular organization
• All living things are composed of biological macromolecules (nucleic acids, proteins,
carbohydrates, and lipids/fats)
2) Complexity and Organization
• Living systems demonstrate a unique and complex hierarchical organization
• All living things are complex in all levels, from chemical level to societal level. They have
complex molecular/DNA structure, which makes a complex cell structure. All these cells
make a complex organism, and this organism also has complex interactions with other
organisms.
• An organism is well organized, from an anatomical perspective (cells > tissues > organs
> organism), and even from a taxonomic perspective (Kingdom > phylum > class >
order > family > genus > species)
3) Reproduction
• All living things can reproduce themselves
• Life does not arise spontaneously, but has to come only from prior life
• Organismal reproduction demonstrates both heredity and variation:

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

i. Heredity – the transmission of traits from parents to offspring

ii. Variation – the production of differences among traits
• The interaction of heredity and variation needs to be balanced because it is important
for evolution to occur over time.
4) Possession of Genetic Material
• Provides the fidelity of inheritance in the form of DNA.
• The genetic code is consistent among living forms, providing strong evidence for a single
origin of life.
5) Metabolism
• Living organisms maintain themselves by acquiring nutrients from their environment,
which are used to obtain chemical energy and molecular components for building and
maintaining the living system
i. Catabolism (destructive metabolism) - the breakdown of complex molecules to
form simple ones
ii. Anabolism (constructive metabolism) - the synthesis of complex molecules from
simple ones together with the storage of energy
6) Growth and Development
• All organisms pass through a characteristic life cycle
• An organism characteristics changes from its young form to adult form, usually features
changes in size, shape, and differentiation of structures.
7) Environmental Interaction and Irritability
• All animals interact with their environments
• Irritability = all organisms respond to environmental stimuli, allowing them to adapt
and survive.
• Life and environment are inseparable
8) Movement
• Living systems and their parts show precise and controlled movements arising from
within the system
• The energy they extract from their environment permits them to initiate controlled
movement, whether in the form of locomotion (get away from harm, finding food,
disperse to another geographic location, etc.) or through growth and reproduction.

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

Activity 3: Skill-building Activities (with answer key) (18 mins + 2 mins checking)
• Read the instructions carefully and answer accordingly.
• Check your answers against the Key to Corrections found at the end of this activity sheet. Write your
score on your paper.
• Good Luck!

1) Define the branches of zoology based on your understanding of the etymological (name origin)
translation of the word.

EX.
ZOOLOGY “zoion” = animal The study of animals
EX. “anatome” = dissection
ANATOMY The study of structure of animal bodies
CYTOLOGY “cytos” = cell
HISTOLOGY “histos” = tissue
PATHOLOGY “pathos” = injury
PHYSIOLOGY “physios” = natural state
TAXONOMY “taxis” = arrangement
GENETICS “gene”
PSYCHOLOGY “psykhe” = spirit, mind
ECOLOGY “oikos” = habitation
EMBRYOLOGY “embryo” = embryo, fetus
PALEONTOLOGY “palaois” = old, ancient
SOCIOLOGY “socius” = association
ZOOGEOGRAPHY “zoion” animal, “geo” earth
PARASITOLOGY “parasite”
PROTOZOOLOGY “proto” first, “zoion” animal
ENTOMOLOGY “entomon” = insect
MALACOLOGY “malakos” =soft, mulloscs
ICHTHYOLOGY “ichthyo” = fish
HERPETOLOGY “herpeton” = reptile, creeping
ORNITHOLOGY “ornitho” = bird
MAMMALOGY “mammaire” = breast

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

2) Define in your own words the 8 Characteristic of Life (you can also use scenarios or situations that
would help get your point across).

a. Chemical Uniqueness =

b. Complexity and Organization =

c. Reproduction =

d. Possession of Genetic Material =

e. Metabolism =

f. Growth and Development =

g. Environmental Interaction and Irritability =

h. Movement =

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

Activity 4: What I Know Chart, part 2 (2 mins)

• Go back to the “What I Know Chart” in Activity 1 and answer the “What I Learned” column.

Activity 5: Check for Understanding (5 mins)

• Answer the short quiz as honestly as you can. Encircle the letter of your answer. My Score: __________

1) This refers to how an organism perceive and respond to environmental stimuli.

a. Movement
b. Irritability
c. Environmental interaction
d. Metabolism

2) He is responsible for improving the classification system of living organisms, making him the father of
taxonomy.
a. Charles Darwin
b. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
c. Gregor Mendel
d. Carl von Linnaeus

3) Who wrote “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selectiom”?

a. Charles Darwin
b. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
c. Gregor Mendel
d. Carl von Linnaeus

4) This refers to the breakdown of complex molecules to form simple ones.

a. Catabolism
b. Anabolism
c. Metabolism
d. Reproduction

5) Which characteristic of life emphasizes that living organism are made of biological macromolecules like
proteins, carbohydrates and fats?
a. Complexity and Organization
b. Possession of Genetic Code
c. Growth and Development
d. Chemical Uniqueness

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

C. LESSON WRAP-UP

Activity 6: Thinking about Learning (5 mins)

A. Work Tracker
You are done with this session! Let’s track your progress. Shade the session number you just
completed.

P1 P2 P3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

B. Think About Your Learning

Date Learning Target/Topic Scores Action Plan

What module# did you do? What
What’s the date
were the learning targets? What
today?
activities did you do?
What contributed to the quality of your performance today?
What were your scores
What will you do next session to maintain your performance or
in the activities?
improve it?

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

• Does “Environmental interaction” and “Irritability” mean the same thing?
No. “Environmental Interaction” refers to how an organism or a population of organisms uses and perceive
their environment, while “irritability” is how an organism will respond to stimuli presented by their
environment. Example: When a dog is thirsty, it will seek water in its environment. When the dog sees a river, it
will interact with it by going towards the source of water (Environmental Interaction). The water happens to be
very cold, and when the dog drinks from it, it reacts to the temperature and decides it’s too cold for it to drink
(Irritability).

• Why does heredity and variation need to be balanced?

Heredity must never be perfect and variation must never be controlled. Both must be balanced. If heredity were
perfect, then there will be no change in the living systems. Meanwhile, if variation were uncontrolled, biologic
systems would lack stability allowing them to persist through time.
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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

KEY TO CORRECTIONS

Activity 3: Skill-building Activities

1) (1 point each for a total of 19 points)

CYTOLOGY Study of structure and functions within cells

HISTOLOGY Study of the microscopic structure of tissues and organs
PATHOLOGY Study of diseases, their causes and symptoms
PHYSIOLOGY Study of the functions of structures of organisms
TAXONOMY Classifications of organisms
GENETICS Heredity
PSYCHOLOGY Study of behavior of animals, including man
ECOLOGY Study of organisms’ interaction to their environment
EMBYOLOGY Study of developmental stages of animals
PALEONTOLOGY Study of fossil organisms
SOCIOLOGY Study of animal societies, including man
ZOOGEOGRAPHY Study of the geographical distribution of animals
PARASITOLOGY Study of parasites
PROTOZOOLOGY Study of protozoa
ENTOMOLOGY Study of insects
MALACOLOGY Study of mollusks
ICHTHYOLOGY Study of fishes
HERPETOLOGY Study of reptiles and amphibians
ORNITHOLOGY Study of birds
MAMMALOGY Study of Mammals

2) (5 points each for a total of 40 points)

a. Chemical Uniqueness = Biological macromolecules like proteins, lipids, carbohydrates and

nucleic acids are generally present in every form of life.

b. Complexity and Organization = Living organisms is complex in all levels, like from DNA to cell to
tissues to organs and to being a whole body. They are also complex in their society and even to
their classification/toxonomy.

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

c. Reproduction = Living systems can to reproduce themselves in order to continue on their

genetic material. Life always come from prior life and they do not arise spontaneously.

d. Possession of Genetic Material = All living organism possess genetic material in the form of
DNA, and this DNA forms a sequence called the genetic code that is consistent in all living
forms.

e. Metabolism = All living organisms must acquire nutrients and convert this into energy needed
to stay alive.

f. Growth and Development = All organisms have a life history or life cycle and they grow and
change from a young organism to a mature form.

g. Environmental Interaction and Irritability = Life and the environment is inseparable. A living
organism cannot survive without the environment because it is their source of food and energy.
Irritability is how they respond to environmental stimuli, which is important for them to adopt
and to survive.

h. Movement = All living organisms must use their energy to move (like to get away from harm or
find shelter, food, and a mate) and also use their energy to grow and reproduce.

Activity 5: Check for Understanding

1.b 2.d 3.a 4.a 5.d

TEACHER-LED ACTIVITIES
A. If this session happens to be a face-to-face, in-classroom learning session:
1) Collect completed work in the Student Activity Sheets.
2) Allocate your contact time with students to individual or small group mentoring, monitoring,
and student consultations.
3) You may administer summative assessments (quizzes, demonstrations, graded recitation,
presentations, performance tasks) during face-to-face sessions.
4) You may also explore supplementary activities that foster collaboration, provided that social
distancing is observed.
5) You may provide supplementary content via videos, etc.

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 BIO044: General Zoology
Module #1

Name: __________________________________________ Class number: _________________

Section: _________ Schedule: ______________________ Date: _________________________

It is important to remember that students who cannot make it to face-to-face, in-classroom sessions for
health and safety reasons, should not be given lower grades for missing in-class activities and should be
given alternative summative tests.

B. If this session happens to be an at-home learning session for the students:

1) Check and grade collected Student Activity Sheets and other input from students.
2) Schedule phone calls/virtual calls/virtual chats to individual students or small groups of students
to monitor work, provide guidance, answer questions, and check understanding.

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