1. 
2. Help
3. Log In

Note: your lab instructor may set a slightly different order for the lab than that listed below:

Classification (text, p. 637) of the organisms to be covered in lab:

Class Reptilia:

Subclass Anapsida (skull with no temporal opening):

Order Testudines (Chelonia): turtles

Subclass Diapsida (skull with two temporal openings):

Order Squamata: lizards and snakes

Suborder Lacertilia (Sauria): lizards

Suborder Serpentes: snakes

Superorder Archosauria (additional openings in skull, between eyes and nostrils, pp. 630-631 text)

Order Saurischia ("lizard-hipped" dinosaurs: carnivores and long-necked herbivores)

Order Ornithischia ("bird-hipped" dinosaurs: other herbivores, e.g., duck-billed, horned, armored)

TURTLES:

(text, pp. 627-628; lab manual, Exercise 21)

Preserved turtles: stinkpot turtle (aquatic) vs. box turtle (land-dwelling), as well as the painted turtle you have for dissection. Examine these closely to determine what external features help you to indicate the preferred dwelling places of those turtles (check shell, feet, etc.). Your notes and drawings:

Turtle skeletons (pp. 322-323 lab manual): examine the skeletal features listed in the word bank. In particular, examine what parts of the skeleton contribute to the turtle's shell? In addition, examine the skull to determine why turtles are (currently) classified as anapsids. Your notes and drawings:

Turtle dissection (pp. 324-325 lab manual. Find the structures highlighted in the word bank and the laboratory manual. How does the internal layout compare to the amphibians last week? How does it differ?

LIZARDS:

(text, pp. 628-629)

These anole lizards show typical lizard features and coloration patterns. Where might you find them? How do they use their limbs? Note external ear openings and eyelids, features that we will not see with the snakes. Your notes and drawings:

SNAKES:

(text, pp. 632-635)

Preserved snakes: rattlesnake (poisonous) vs. nonpoisonous snake. Examine them closely to determine the differences. What are features of the rattlesnake that are useful for detecting and capturing prey? One hint--why are rattlers considered to be pit vipers? Your notes and drawings:

Snake skeleton: Note the skull and its ability to"open wide." Can you get a sense of the enlarged temporal openings in this modified diapsid skull? Also, note the different kinds of vertebrae in the axial skeleton--which kind of vertebrae does a snake have the most of? Your notes and drawings:

Snake skin: There are examples of both shed skin and complete skin ("hide") of snakes. What is the difference between the two? What kind of scales do reptiles have (p. 150 text)? Knowing that, what part of the skin (integument) does the shed skin come from? Can an organism (e.g., bony fish ) with dermal scales shed its skin in this way? Your notes and drawings:

DINOSAURS:

(text, pp. 630-631)

A major part of our exploration of the dinosaur world will be the video VT 3378,"Eyewitness: Dinosaur." Think about the major structural features of dinosaurs and their lifesty1es. Are these similar or different to modern-day reptiles? In addition, your lab instructor may wish to bring you over to the Biology Department fossil showcase in Fitzgibbons to examine the following dinosaur fossils:

metatarsal and tendon: what is the size comparison of these compared to yours?

gastrolith: what does this tell us about dinosaur digestive patterns?

|main page| |background| |03028: Physiology| |03048: Anatomy|

|03050: Invertebrate Zoology| |03051: Vertebrate Zoology| |03074: Economic Botany|

Please send comments and questions to: cronewil@hvcc.edu

HVCC home page

Copyright 1999, 2000 by Wilson Crone

External and unofficial links are not endorsed by Hudson Valley Community College

This web page last updated on February 29, 2000