Search Biology Resources:

This is a sample of resources available in Auraria Library and on the Internet for doing research about biology.

Each link will direct you to a list of resources on the databases & indexes page. Database selection can determine the quality of search results. Try different databases, read the descriptions provided and inquire at the reference desk if you are not sure which to use.

Books are accessed through the Auraria Library catalog, Skyline, using an Author search (for authors, other  individuals, and corporate entities listed as authors, i.e. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency),  a Word search (for subjects such as biology, sea turtles, ecology, etc.), or a Title search (for titles of books). A Periodical Title search will help you locate magazines, journals, or newspapers that we own such as American Biology Teacher or the Journal of Cell Biology.

Looking through the Library's collection of biology and life sciences materials may help you decide on a topic. Information about biology and life sciences can be found in several collections, i.e., reference, periodicals, government documents, media and book collections. Books shelved on the second floor can be checked out. Within each collection area, library materials are arranged and located by call numbers. The call number refers to a subject. Most of the library materials in the areas of nursing, and other related areas are assigned the call numbers as listed:

• QH Biology 
• QK Botany 
• QL Zoology 
• QR Microbiology
• S   Agriculture
• SB Horticulture

For a more specific approach, use the Library of Congress Subject Headings, or ask reference librarians for more information. Normally a book will not provide the most up-to-minute information on a subject, but it can be very useful when you  want considerable background information on your topic.

Reference Books

Access Science (McGraw Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology) -- The online equivalent of the 9th edition of the print set, this database contains full access to 7100-plus articles, 115,000 dictionary terms, hundreds of Research Updates in all areas of science and technology, and 2000 biographies of leading scientists.

Cambridge encyclopedia of life sciences. REF QH307.2 .C36

Dictionary of biological psychology REF QP360 .D52 2001 

Dictionary of ecology, evolution, and systematics REF QH540.4 .L56 1998 

Dictionary of Organic Compounds  REF QD246.D5 

Dictionary of zoology     REF QL9 .C66 1999 

Methods to find books not in the Auraria Library:

Prospector: the Colorado Unified Catalog   Use Prospector to determine which major Colorado library may own a particular book. You can order the book if it is available at another library.

NetLibrary A database of online, full text books.

Tip:   You may use ILL (Interlibrary loan) to order journal and magazine articles that Auraria Library doesn't own. You may use WorldCat to request books, dissertations, video recordings and other materials that Auraria doesn't own and that you cannot find in Prospector.

Local Denver Resources.

University of Colorado Health Science Center Denison Memorial Library (4200 East 9th, Denver, CO 80262, phone: 303-315-7460) - A major medical library just east of Colorado Boulevard.

Style Manuals

Style Manuals for online versions of how to cite material.

Scientific style and format : the CSE manual for authors, editors, and publishers / Style Manual Committee, Council of Science Editors.
T11 .S386 2006
The ACS style guide : effective communication of scientific information.
QD8.5 .A25 2006

Chemistry ACS Guidelines for Documenting Sources | ACS Style Guide: A Manual for Authors and Editors. Ref QD8.5.A25 1997 | American Chemical Society (ACS) Citation Style for Internet Sources | Handbook for Authors of Papers in American Chemical Society Publications. 2nd Floor T11.A4 1978

Biology/Life Sciences Author's Handbook of Styles for Life Science Journals. Ref R119 .A85 1996 | Scientific Style and Format: the CBE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers. Ref T11 .S386 2006 | Using CBE Style to Cite and Document Sources | CBE Documentation

Websites Featuring Style Information
CBE Documentation
Using CBE Style to Cite and Document Sources

Internet Resources

Tip: If you are searching on the Internet, remember the Library search tips and think about the reliability and accuracy of the information.

Alternatives to Animal Testing Website - The Altweb website was created to serve as a gateway to alternatives news, information, and resources on the Internet for biomedical researchers, industry, the animal welfare community, those who work with laboratory animals (technicians, veterinarians, etc.) and more.

American Institute of Biological Sciences

Animal Diversity Web - A free online database of animal natural history, distribution, classification, and conservation biology at the University of Michigan web site.

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences -- The Annals series (approximately 30 volumes per year) provides multi-disciplinary perspectives on research in fields of current scientific interest. The online database provides access to tables of contents from 1964, abstracts from 1975, and full text of articles from 1997.

Bat Conservation International - The web site of BCI whose mission is to protect and restore bats and their habitats worldwide.

Biology Page -- At the Directorate for Biological Sciences, National Science Foundation.

Biological Resources Discipline - The purpose of this web site of the BRD of the USGS is to work with others to provide the scientific understanding and technologies needed to support the sound management and conservation of our Nation's biological resources.

bugbios -- Insect resources including high-quality insect photos.

Center for the Biology of Natural Systems -- Web site of the CBNS which is a research organization with 30 years experience in the analysis of environmental, energy and resource problems and their economic implications. Established in 1966 at Washington University, St. Louis, CBNS moved to Queens College in 1981, where it is organized as a research institute of the City University of New York.

DNA Learning Center - The web site of the Dolan DNA Learning Center (DNALC) which is the world's first science center devoted entirely to public genetics education. It is an operating unit of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, an important center for molecular genetics research.

eNature.com -- Offers online searchable field guides to  plant and animal species. Information is taken from various Audubon Society Field Guides, Regional Guides, and Nature Guides.

Evolution Web site -- The education division of the BBC has put together a collection of  materials on the topic of evolution. Included is the full text of Darwin's Origin of Species.

Federal Information by Subject

Integrated Taxonomic Information System -- ITIS, the Integrated Taxonomic Information System web site where you will find authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, and microbes of North America and the world. 

Internet Directory for Botany - An index to botanical information available on the Internet

Iowa State University Entomology Image Library -- Color images and animations of  plant diseases and damage,  butterflies, moths, caterpillars, mosquitoes, grasshoppers and other bugs.

Kimball's Biology Pages -- Cell and molecular biology hypertext dictionary.

Living Planet Report -- World Wildlife Fund's (WWF) Living Planet Report attempts to quantify the speed at which nature is disappearing from Earth and trace human pressures on the natural environment.

Living Links [RealPlayer] --  Hosted by the Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center at Emory University, the Living Links site specializes in "comparisons of the social life, ecology, cognition, neurology, and molecular genetics of apes and humans

MicrobeLibrary.org --  This site, provided by the American Society for Microbiology, is a searchable database of images of microbes.

National Resources Inventory --  The National Resources Inventory (NRI) is a statistically based sample of land use and natural resource conditions and trends on U.S. nonfederal lands. It is the most comprehensive database of its kind ever attempted anywhere in the world.

Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center of the USGS offers bird checklists developed by others that indicate the seasonal occurrence of birds in state, federal, and private management areas, nature preserves, and other areas of special interest in the United States.

Plant Image Gallery -- A database of approximately 2,000 high-quality images of plants, mainly from Europe, Costa Rica, Japan, and the Galapagos Islands.

PLANTS -- This  database on the USDA web site includes names, alternative crops, checklists, photographs, plant characteristics, native status, invasive and noxious plants, distributional data, crop information, plant symbols, plant growth data, wetland status, threatened and endangered status, references, and more.

Scott Polar Research Institute -- Web site of The Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI), the oldest international research center in the world covering both the Arctic and Antarctic regions. The Scott Polar Research Institute is part of the Faculty of Earth Sciences and Geography in the School of Physical Sciences of the University of Cambridge. 

W 3 Tropicos - The Missouri Botanical Garden's VAST (VAScular Tropicos) nomenclatural database and associated authority files. Search by scientific name to receive information on nomenclature, type specimens, publications, chromosome counts, and maps of specimen localities.

Lii.org (Librarians' Index to the Internet) is a well maintained source of quality web sites in many subject areas. Do a search on biology or other subjects of interest and you will find many good web sites.