Lecture Theaters and Laboratories
The Department has many resources for teaching and research. It has two main lecture theaters equipped with multimedia and two laboratories used for undergraduate teaching. These teaching laboratories are equipped with necessary tools for teaching including compound and stereomicroscopes, Axio Vert inverted microscope, centrifuges, incubators, microtomes etc. The students and staff also have a well stocked Department Library at their disposal. In addition, a Computer Room provides the undergraduates computer and Internet access and this facility is also used for some of the teaching.
Department Museum and Specimen Room
The Department holds an impressive collection of invertebrate and vertebrate specimens in the form of wet and dry preserved specimens, slides and vertebrate skeletal specimens. All these are available for undergraduate teaching during laboratory sessions and this facility greatly enhances the students learning experience.
Department Aquarium
The Department also has a well maintained aquarium to showcases live freshwater fish species. It consists of both external tanks and more than 100 indoor fish tanks with a central aeration system. This provides the necessary conditions required for maintaining different sized and types of fish species. At present it holds more than 40 species of fish with more than 20 endemic species to Sri Lanka. This facility is utilized in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and research. It provides the students maximum hands on experience to learn about these aquatic organisms and also to conduct research related to conservation, breeding and industry.
Furthermore, without confining students to class room and laboratory environments they are encouraged to venture outside of the classroom setting for learning at numerous occasions. Many field visits are organized throughout their undergraduate carrier to different places in the country to provide the students maximum opportunity to learn firsthand current status in the relevant fields.
The trained and experienced Technical Staff Officers of the Department play an important role in the undergraduate teaching program. These personnel are trained in taxidermy, entomology, histology, aquaculture etc. With their expertise and training, they facilitate in conducting large number of undergraduate laboratory sessions successfully.
In addition to undergraduate teaching, the staff, undergraduate and postgraduate students are also involved in conducting research in various fields in zoology and biology. The academic staff members are trained in various disciplines including ecology, entomology, developmental biology, limnology, marine biology, parasitology, and wildlife management. Many of the research conducted in the department consists of both field and laboratory oriented studies. The Department has the following laboratories for research and at present several of the laboratories have facilities to conduct research in molecular biology.
Research Laboratories
- Entomology Research Laboratory
- Evolutionary Biology & Behavioral Ecology Laboratory
- Limnology Research Laboratory
- Parasitology Research Laboratory
- Vector Biology Research Laboratory
- Wildlife Research Laboratory
Molecular parasitology Research Laboratory
Vector Biology Research Laboratory
The Invertebrate Systematics and Diversity Facility (ISDF)
The Department also houses The Invertebrate Systematics and Diversity Facility (ISDF), which is the Smithsonian Insect collection made during the Smithsonian-Sri Lanka Insect project conducted form 1978 - 1998. A total of 3098 insect specimens representing 1806 species in 14 Orders are included in the collection.