Malacology Malacology Malacology is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (mollusks or molluscs), the second-largest phylum of animals in terms of described species after the arthropods. Mollusks include snails and slugs, clams, octopus and squid, and numerous other kinds, many of which have shells. One division of malacology, conchology, is devoted to the study of mollusk shells. Malacology derives from Greek , "malakos", "soft"; and , "-logia". Fields within malacological research include taxonomy, ecology and evolution. Applied malacology studies medical, veterinary, and agricultural applications, for example mollusks as vectors of disease, as in schistosomiasis.
Primatology uninfluenced by human interference. There are three methodological approaches in primatology: field study, the more realistic approach, laboratory study, the more controlled approach, and semi-free ranging, where primate habitat and wild social structure is replicated in a captive setting. Field is done in natural environments, in which scientific observers watch primates in their natural habitat. Laboratory study is done in controlled lab settings. In lab settings, scientists are able to perform controlled experimentation on the learning capabilities and behavioral patterns of the animals. In semi-free ranging studies, scientists are able to watch how primates might act in the wild but