Zoology

Zoology (ancient Greek: zóon = creature, animal, lógos = study) is animal science and is a branch of biology.

It deals with all phenomena of animal life, such as the shape (morphology) and the structure of animals (anatomy, histology, cytology), their bodily functions (physiology), individual (ontogeny) and tribe development (phylogenesis), with the fossil animals (palaeozoology), the family relationships (systematics), the naming of species (taxonomy), their relationships to the environment (ecology), their distribution (animal geography) and their behavior.

These subject areas are grouped under the heading of general zoology. This contrasts with special zoology, which deals with specific groups of animals. Applied zoology includes i.a. animal husbandry and parasitology.