Evolutionary Biology - Intro to Comparative Anatomy and Phylogenetics

Aristotle said that nature could only be understood through observation, analysis, and classification. Humans have devised many ways to observe, analyze, and classify the natural world. Join our friends from the Johns Hopkins Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution to learn about their favorite tools in evolutionary biology, comparative anatomy, and phylogenetics.

This interactive workshop will start with Dr. Donald Morgan and PhD candidate Savannah Cobb discussing how comparative anatomy helps us understand living and fossil animals. In the afternoon, Dr. EJ Huang will introduce phylogenetics and explain how scientists determine evolutionary relationships.

Get hands-on with real skeletal specimens and datasets to learn how researchers infer the ecology of extinct species and map them onto the tree of life!

- Taxonomy is the science/study of classification.
- Phylogeny is the science/study of evolutionary relationships between organisms.
- Comparative anatomy is the study of how different species’ anatomical structures compare and contrast with one another.

It’s a critical moment for this work. There are potentially 8 million species on Earth, and researchers have only described about 1.5 million. Some believe we are experiencing the 6th great extinction event meaning that many will go extinct before we can name them. It’s a race to record life as it disappears.

Don’t be intimidated by science. All are welcomed – wherever you are in your understanding and study of nature.
NOTE: Please bring a lap top to the class. We will break for lunch.

You may also like the following events from The Natural History Society of Maryland:

• This Friday, 20th June, 10:00 am, Insect Zoo Tour with "The Bug Guy" in College Park
• This Saturday, 21st June, 09:00 am, Reptile and Amphibian Handling and Care for Veterinary Staff and Wildlife Rehabbers in Parkville
• Next Thursday, 26th June, 09:30 am, Research & Campus Tour of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Mayo

Also check out other Workshops in Parkville, Sports events in Parkville.