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1. Purpose of the collection
The Biological Sciences Library collection in this area is intended to support the teaching and research programs of the Department of Zoology and Entomology which is part of the School of Life Sciences.
2. Primary user groups served
The Department is the only Australian institution offering instruction in the sciences of Entomology and Acarology (the study of mites) at the undergraduate and all postgraduate levels and all aspects of basic and applied research dealing with insects, mites, spiders and their relatives. The Department is the major provider of teaching in animal biology, ecology and evolution and also contributes to programs which cross several schools and faculties, including genetics, developmental biology and neurobiology. The department also provides service teaching for students in agriculture, veterinary science.
The Department plays a major role in the Centres for Conservation Biology and Marine Studies, which integrate and coordinate research in, respectively, conservation biology and marine science and actively promote postgraduate study in these areas. Members of the Department are closely associated with the activities of the Institute of Molecular Bioscience, the Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Rainforest Ecology and Management and the Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Plant Pathology.
Areas of research in the Department of Zoology and Entomology include conservation and evolutionary biology, developmental biology, ecology of terrestrial vertebrates and insects, insect systematics, insect-pest control, marine ecology, aquaculture, behavioral ecology, reproductive biology and marine and coastal biology and ecology.
Research in the marine area is a strong focus of the University's Centre for Marine Studies, to which the Department is a major contributor, and involves studies at the University's field research stations. The department is a major contributor to the institution's strengths in conservation biology and molecular and cell biology and to the priority area of marine science. The program in Entomology is closely linked with the Centres for Insect Diagnostics and Pest Information Technology and Transfer.
3. Description of the collection
The Biological Sciences Library has collections covering all areas in zoology and entomology. The collection is strong in the areas of Australian birds, Australian mammals, marsupials, monotremes and in some zoological related areas such as worms, parasitology (arthropods), anatomy and embryology and insects injurious to animals.
The Library has many electronic databases that are accessible in all branch libraries and from home or office. These include:
- Biological Abstracts
- Zoological Record
- Medline
- Cambridge Scientific Abstracts
- CAB
- Web of Science
The Library also has electronic access to collections of full text journals including:
- Cambridge University Press journals
- Academic Press online library (IDEAL)
- Blackwell Science journals
- InfoTrac Expanded Academic ASAP
- LINK
(Springer publications)
- ScienceDirect
(Elsevier)
4. Interdisciplinary relationships
Zoology produces a voluminous monographic literature. A number of research areas relevant to zoology and entomology are collected for parasitology, agriculture, marine science, ecology and environmental sciences and to a lesser extent Botany, Anatomical Sciences, Biochemistry, Microbiology and various centres.
Basic entomological science does not produce a high output of monographic literature. Economic entomology does have a high output but is substantially collected for agriculture, ecology and environmental sciences and to a lesser extent botany.
Collections at other branch libraries namely Gatton Library, Architecture and Music Library, Social Sciences and Humanities Library and the Dorothy Hill Physical Sciences and Engineering Library, supplement the collection in Biological Sciences Library.
5. Scope of current collecting
1. Languages collected
The Zoology and Entomology collection contains principally English language materials.
2. Types (formats) of material collected
The library collects mainly current material. However, monographs and serials are purchased retrospectively when academic or research staff request them.
3. Conspectus
The Library has Conspectus Level 4 collections in Australian birds, Australian mammals, marsupials, monotremes and in some zoological related areas such as worms, parasitology (arthropods), anatomy and embryology.
A collection at Level 4 contains both current and retrospective resources, with historical material retained. Some rare material is in Fryer. Much of the historical material is placed in the Library's Warehouse. The collection supports postgraduate and independent research and includes the major published source materials required. It includes all important reference works, a wide selection of specialised monographs, a very extensive collection of journals and access to print indexes and databases in the field.
Almost reaching research level is the collection in conservation of Australian natural resources, which is relevant to the ecology and conservation streams of research and teaching.
Conspectus review of the collection rates many of Entomology and economic entomology lines at 3A or 3B.
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