In the Shadow of the Dinosaurs: Early Mesozoic Tetrapods
Cambridge University Press, 1/12/1995
EAN 9780521452427, ISBN10: 0521452422
Hardcover, 448 pages, 26.1 x 18.6 x 3.2 cm
Language: English
The early Mesozoic period was a critical period in the evolution of life on land when most of today's major groups of terrestrial vertebrates arose and dinosaurs and pterosaurs rose to prominence. In recent years this period has received a great deal of attention from palaeontologists, and it is now felt that the small vertebrates which lived in the shadows of the first dinosaurs tell us a great deal about the evolution of modern terrestrial ecosystems. This book attempts to collate all the information on the small vertebrates and features contributions by experts with international reputations in their fields. There are chapters on the taxonomy and phylogeny of the key vertebrate groups, followed by a section dealing with the most significant fossiliferous assemblages worldwide. The final section looks at how faunal turnover at this time is measured and examines the possibility of mass extinctions.
Acknowledgments
List of contributors
Introduction Nicholas C. Fraser and Hans-Dieter Sues
Part I. Phylogeny
Introduction
1. Late Triassic and Jurassic amphibians
fossil record and phylogeny Andrew Milner
2. The Lepidosauromorpha
an overview with special emphasis on the Squamata Olivier Rieppel
3. Late Triassic-Early Jurassic sphenodontians from China and the phylogeny of the Sphenodontia Xiao-chun Wu
4. Marine members of the Sphenodontia Robert L. Carroll and Rupert Wild
5. Patterns of evolution in Mesozoic Crocodyliformes James M. Clark
6. Sister-group relationships of mammals and transformations of diagnostic mammalian characters Zhexi Luo
Part II. Faunal Assemblages
7. A review of the British Middle Triassic tetrapod assemblages Michael J. Benton, Geoffrey Warrington, Andrew J. Newell and Patrick S. Spencer
8. Small tetrapods from the Upper Triassic of the Richmond Basin, Virginia Hans-Dieter Sues
9. Microvertebrates from the Placerias Quarry
a window on Late Triassic vertebrate diversity in the American Southwest Fran Tannenbaum Kaye and Kevin Padian
10. Late Triassic microvertebrates from central Europe Denise Sigogneau and Gerhard Hahn
11. Assemblages of small tetrapods from British Late Triassic fissure deposits Nicholas C. Fraser
12. Ornithiscian dinosaurs from the Upper Triassic of the United States Adrian P. Hunt and Spencer G. Lucas
13. Early Jurassic small tetrapods from the McCoy Brook formation of Nova Scotia Neil H. Shubin, Paul E. Olsen and Hans-Dieter Sues
14. The small tetrapods of the Lower Lufeng Formation, Yunnan, China Zhexi Luo and Xiao-chun Wu
15. Assemblages of small tetrapods from the Early Jurassic of Britain Susan E. Evans and Kenneth A. Kermack
16. A review of the Early Jurassic tetrapods from the Glen Canyon Group of the American Southwest Hans-Dieter Sues, James M. Clark and Farish A. Jenkins, Jr
17. An Early or Middle Jurassic tetrapod assemblage from the La Boca Formation, northeastern Mexico James M. Clark, Marisol Montellano, James A. Hopson, René Hernández and David Fastovsky
18. Middle Jurassic microvertebrate assemblages from the British Isles Susan E. Evans and Andrew Milner
19. A new Bathonian microvertebrate locality in the English Midlands Sara J. Metcalf and Rachel J. Walker
Part III. Faunal Change
20. The chronology and biogeography of mammalian origins Spencer G. Lucas and Adrian P. Hunt
21. Biotic and climatic changes in the Carnian (Triassic) of Europe and adjacent areas Michael J. Simms, Alastair H. Ruffell and Andrew L. A. Johnson
22. Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic extinctions among continental tetrapods Michael J. Benton
23. Comments on 'Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic extinctions among continental tetrapods' Nicholas C. Fraser and Hans-Dieter Sues
24. What was the tempo and mode of evolutionary change in the Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic? Kevin Padian
25. Field trip guide
field guide to three late Triassic tetrapod sites in Virginia and North Carolina Paul E. Olsen and Annika K. Johansson.