What determines an animal’s resistance to disease? Why do many female animals exhibit ‘mate choice’? How can we help animals cope in hostile environments? On this course you’ll you study the enormous variety of animal life on earth and discover the answers to these and many other searching questions.

We explore related aspects of animal biology, including animal behaviour, ecology, evolution, cell biology and physiology, as well as applied aspects of animal conservation and management.

Fieldwork will be an essential part of your training. In addition to fieldwork in Scotland, we run optional fieldtrips in Years 3 and 4. One course is currently situated in southern Europe (for example, recent trips have travelled to the French Cévennes Mountains, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, to the CERES Field Centre in Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina on the western Portuguese Atlantic coast).

As Scotland’s hub for conservation science, with close links to many animal conservation organisations, Stirling the ideal place to study biology.