Comparative Physiology

9 units (3-0-6) | third term

How can some frogs freeze during winter, only to thaw and resume normal life in spring? How do icefish survive without hemoglobin, and how do naked mole rats and diving animals withstand prolonged periods of low oxygen? How do desert animals persist with minimal water while coping with large daily temperature fluctuations? In this course, we explore these and related questions to understand how animals integrate metabolism, respiration, circulation, gas transport, excretion, and locomotion to meet ecological demands. Throughout the course, we cover the fundamental chemical, physical, and evolutionary principles underlying the diversity of functional adaptations to environmental stressors. The course emphasizes vertebrate physiology and draws broadly on examples from non-model organisms.