Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution: 2 (Cambridge Paleobiology Series, Series Number 2)
Cambridge University Press, 7/17/1997
EAN 9780521478090, ISBN10: 052147809X
Paperback, 464 pages, 25.4 x 17.8 x 2.3 cm
Language: English
Originally published in English
This new text provides an integrated view of the forces that influence the patterns and rates of vertebrate evolution from the level of living populations and species to those that resulted in the origin of the major vertebrate groups. The evolutionary roles of behaviour, development, continental drift, and mass extinctions are compared with the importance of variation and natural selection that were emphasised by Darwin. It is extensively illustrated, showing major transitions between fish and amphibians, dinosaurs and birds, and land mammals and whales. No book since Simpson's Major Features of Evolution has attempted such a broad study of the patterns and forces of evolutionary change. Undergraduate students taking a general or advanced course on evolution, and graduate students and professionals working in evolutionary biology and palaeontology will find the book of great interest.
Preface
Acknowledgments
Part I. Current Problems in Evolutionary Theory
Part II. Theories of Evolution at the Level of Populations and Species
Part III. Evolution in Modern Populations
Part IV. Limits to Knowledge of the Fossil Record and Their Influence on Studies of Evolution
Part V. Patterns of Evolution Among Late Cenozoic Mammals
Part VI. Patterns of Evolution of Non-Mammalian Vertebrates in the Late Cenozoic
Part VII. The Influence of Systems of Classification on Concepts of Evolutionary Patterns
Part VIII. Evolutionary Constraints
Part IX. Evolutionary Genetics
Part X. Development and Evolution
Part XI. Physical Constraints
Part XII. Major Evolutionary Transitions
Part XIII. Patterns of Radiation
Part XIV. Forces of Evolution
Part XV. Conclusions and Comparisons
Glossary. References. Index.