Museum of Zoology Department Vision Message Objectives

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Brittany May
6 years ago
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1 Museum of Zoology Department The museum of Zoology department was established in Shawwal 1390 H (1970) with a few samples of birds and some young mammals. The number of specimens in the museum increased gradually through the mummification of many animal samples that were brought to the museum through field trips carried out by the department's staff to collect animal samples from different environments and habitats in the Kingdom, as well as samples received from some of the employees of the university and the staff of wildlife reserves to support and enrich the museum with animal samples. However, the bulk of the museum samples of insects, invertebrates, fish, amphibians, birds and mammals were collected through organizing field trips by the department to collect samples of field studies carried out by students of the department in various environments of the Kingdom. The museum contains a large number of animal groups of the kingdom, which are scientifically arranged and classified to facilitate the work of researchers and students in studying the types of animals found in the Kingdom's environments. Moreover, the museum also contains an integrated unit for animal mummification and conservation which helps a lot during the teaching process in the department. It should be noted that the museum receives annually hundreds of students from the general education stages, both from inside and outside Riyadh, in addition to many visitors and researchers from inside and outside the Kingdom. Vision Spreading the culture of scientific museums and natural history as one of the tributaries of knowledge and learning. Message Dissemination of scientific information and knowledge through samples presented to visitors in a manner that promotes self-learning. Objectives 1. Providing the appropriate place for the reference samples (Prototype) of different animal wildtypes in the Kingdom and the conservation of samples used in scientific projects (MSc., PhD.) in the department as a reference.

2 1 2. Providing scientific services to students of the Zoology Department, post-graduate students and researchers from inside and outside the Kingdom. 3. Giving the students at various stages of public education the chance to visit the museum to identify various types of animals in the local environment, and to identify their habitats. 4. Providing scientific and knowledge services to community members and visitors enabling them to see and learn about various animal groups existing in local environments of the Kingdom as a cultural facility to provide a clear picture of the local wildlife. 5. Participating in scientific and cultural exhibitions to display the animals and environments of the Kingdom at the university level and beyond, and to provide schools with some samples that they wish to display upon establishing scientific and technical exhibitions and returning them after the expiry of the presentation period. 6. Providing training courses on mummification for science and biology teachers in general education schools as well as hobbyists of mummification and preservation of samples, in order to be able to mummify some samples and use them as educational aids. The museum includes some of the phyla of the animal world of different classes and orders collected mostly from the regions and environments of the Kingdom in addition to few animal samples received from the some international museums as well as Riyadh Zoo and hobbyists of birds and pets breeding. Here are some information on selected classes and orders and their examples: 1. Birds: There are eight thousand and six hundred species of birds ranging in size from the hummingbird to the largest ostrich. The birds differ in colors, sounds, environments and food varieties, but they make up a distinct range of animals with many similar characteristics. For example, all birds have feathers and this is enough to determine if the unknown organism is a bird or not. Birds are warm-blooded animals as mammals, and the feathers help them keeping their bodies warm. All birds fly except the ostrich and the penguin.

3 2 HOOPOE (Upupa epops) Green peafowl (Pavo muticus)

4 3 EAGLE OWL (Budo budo) BUZZARD (Falco cherrug) 2. Mammals Mammals are warm-blooded animals (constant temperature), so they have to be covered with fur or hair to keep them warm. Young puppies are born alive, mostly active, with the exception of the single-stroke order laying eggs such as the anteater and duck-billed platypus. They feed their babies with milk produced from the mother mammary glands. Mammals are the highest phylum

They live either on land, moving from one place to another, dig holes in the earth, or they live in water, such as

5 4 in the vertebrates, forming a wide range of species, including mammals living in warm regions such as lions, giraffes and elephants, as well as cold, well-adapted areas such as polar bears and musk. They live either on land, moving from one place to another, dig holes in the earth, or they live in water, such as otters and seals. There is one type of mammals that has the ability to fly, the bat. Honey badger= Ratel (Mellivora capensis) Crested porcupine (Hystrix indica)

6 5 Arabian gazelle (Gazella gazelle) Nubian ibex (Capraibex nubiana)

6 Jackal (Canis aureus) 3. Reptiles Most reptiles live more than other animals in a dried environment. Their bodies are covered with corneas or corneal plates to resist drought.

7 6 Jackal (Canis aureus) 3. Reptiles Most reptiles live more than other animals in a dried environment. Their bodies are covered with corneas or corneal plates to resist drought. They are called reptiles because they are legless in some, such as snakes, or their bodies barely touch the earth when they move because of their shorter legs. These animals are variable in temperature, unlike birds and mammals, and they lay eggs. The phylum of reptiles includes various types of lizards, snakes, seals, turtles and crocodiles.

8 7 Arabic cobra (Naja haje arabicus) Bitis arietans (Bitis arietans arietans)

9 8 Cerastes (Cerastes ceraastes) Desert black cobra (Walterinnesia aegyptia)

10 9 Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricate) Totoise (Testudo sp.)

10 4. Fish Fish live in oceans, seas and freshwater, ranging in size from less than centimeters to several meters for adults. Fish breathe oxygen dissolved in the water through gills.

11 10 4. Fish Fish live in oceans, seas and freshwater, ranging in size from less than centimeters to several meters for adults. Fish breathe oxygen dissolved in the water through gills. The main engine of the majority of fish is the caudal fin that moves the fish forward, while the dorsal fin helps maintaining balance, and the remaining fins are used to guide the fish. There are three groups of fish, the first having circular mouth and the second having cartilage and the third having bones. The circular mouthed fish differ from the other two groups that they lack jaws. The group of cartilaginous fish has a cartilage structure rather than a skeleton such as shark and elk. The third group (bone fish) is characterized by a dense cohesive internal structure (support) of bones and usually the skin is covered by overlapping crusts that are very small or modified sheets or solid rings. The below-listed examples are found in the museum. Bat fish (Platax sp.)

12 11 Unicorn fish (Naso unicornis) 5. Insects Insects are animals that belong to the largest group of invertebrate animals known as arthropods. These organisms have a body divided into several rings are almost separated from each other. These rings are the head, chest and abdomen, and often carry a pair of composite eyes, pairs of sensor horns and three pairs of the mouth tentacles. The chest consists of three clear rings, each carrying a pair of arthropods on the lower surface. The chest mostly also carries a pair of wings, sometimes one pair. In rare cases, the wings do not carry wings at all in the adult insect. The abdomen consists of a number of rings (6-12) and lacks appendages opposite to the hindabdomen. Following are some of these insects.

13 12 Butterfly )Danaus chrysippus( Citrus butterfiy )Papilio demoleus(

14 13 Nepidae )Nepa apiculata( Poekilocerus )Poekilocerus vittatus bufonius(

DO NOW: Invertebrate POP Quiz. Sit Quietly and clear off your desk/table of everything EXCEPT and blank piece of white lined paper and a pen/pencil.

DO NOW: Invertebrate POP Quiz. Sit Quietly and clear off your desk/table of everything EXCEPT and blank piece of white lined paper and a pen/pencil. DO NOW: Invertebrate POP Quiz Sit Quietly and clear off your desk/table of everything EXCEPT and blank piece of white lined paper and a pen/pencil. DO NOW: Invertebrate POP Quiz Question 1: What is an