For descriptions and a list of faculty in each research area, please click on the link below.

Comparative Biology and Systematics
Comparative biology and systematics are concerned with the inference of phylogenetic (genealogical) relationships among species, which in turn provide a foundation for many insights into the history of changes in their characteristics. Because of theoretical advancements, development of new analytical algorithms, increased computing capability and robust new data sources, we can now, in principle, develop a complete picture of the tree of life, which will provide the foundation for innumerable ecological and evolutionary studies.

Faculty in EEB are experts on many branches of the tree of life, and use a diverse set of approaches and data from many sources, including DNA sequences, behavior, morphometrics, and development, to understand the history and diversification of these branches.

Ecology
Ecology embraces all aspects of the relationships between organisms and their environment, which includes both biotic and abiotic components. Ecologists in EEB study phenomena at scales from the molecular to the global, at levels of organization from the individual organism through populations and communities to ecosystems, in habitats from Michigan to tropical forests, to the tundra and to the deep ocean using tools that range from field experiments to mathematical modeling to DNA and chemical analyses.

Evolutionary Processes
The study of evolutionary processes investigates the sources of genetic variation (e.g., mutation), the evolution of genes and genomes, the causes of genetic and phenotypic variation within populations, the causes of genetic and phenotypic divergence between populations and species, and the neutral and non-neutral (i.e., selective) processes that lead to behavioral, morphological, and ecological change.

Evolutionary biologists in EEB study a broad array of processes underlying evolutionary change, including mechanisms of genome evolution, the developmental basis of species differences, adaptive divergence of ecological, behavioral and sexual characters, the influence of models of speciation on patterns of biodiversity, and temporal and distributional shifts of populations in response to climatic change.

Paleobiology
Paleobiology includes the study of how long-term physical changes of ancient global geography and climate have affected the evolution of plants and animals, how ecosystems have responded to these changes, and how these responses have affected today's patterns of biodiversity. Paleobiologists are interested not only in how the environment has changed, but how ecosystems themselves have changed, and how evolution has occurred in its ecological context over the last 400 million years. Paleobiologists at Michigan in EEB include experts in fossil mammals, invertebrates, dinosaurs and plants.

Organismal Biology
Organismal biology involves the analysis of physiology, morphology, and behavior of individuals, how these characteristics interact with the environment, and how they differ among organisms within a species and among species. Thus, many organismal biologists also have a strong ecological and/or evolutionary perspective in their research program. Within EEB, researchers study functional morphology, evolution of life histories, evolutionary and ecological aspects of animal behavior, and the chemistry of defense.