The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation

The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation
Author: Dolph Schluter
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2000-08-31
Genre:
ISBN: 0191588326

Adaptive radiation is the evolution of diversity within a rapidly multiplying lineage. It can cause a single ancestral species to differentiate into an impressively vast array of species inhabiting a variety of environments. Much of life's diversity has arisen during adaptive radiations. Some of the most famous recent examples include the East African cichlid fishes, the Hawaiian silverswords, and of course, Darwin's Gal--aacute--;pagos finches,. This book evaluates the causes of adaptive radiation. It focuses on the 'ecological' theory of adaptive radiation, a body of ideas that began with Darwin and was developed through the early part of the 20th Century. This theory proposes that phenotypic divergence and speciation in adaptive radiation are caused ultimately by divergent natural selection arising from differences in environment and competition between species. In The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation the author re-evaluates the ecological theory, along with its most significant extensions and challenges, in the light of all the recent evidence. This important book is the first full exploration of the causes of adaptive radiation to be published for decades, written by one of the world's best young evolutionary biologists.

The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation

The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation
Author: Dolph Schluter
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2000-09-07
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 9780198505228

'...a scholarly work of great clarity and force of argument. It is essential reading for all students of evolution... a book that will take its place near the ones by Dobzhansky, Lack, Mayr and Simpson that inspired it.' Peter R. Grant, Quarterly Review of Biology '...in each decade, one book stands out in terms of its influence on the field of evolutionary biology... Although only one-year old, this decade might have already produced its member of this pantheon: Dolph Schluter' The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation ...it will lead to new avenues of research and new ways of thinking about adaptive radiation.' Jonathan B. Losos, Trends in Ecology and Evolution '...presents and impressively thorough evaluation of the empirical evidence that has accumulated since Simpson's snythesis...an absolute 'must read' for all graduate students in the fields of ecology and evolution and for anyone interested in evolutionary diversity. It will become a classic' Axel Meyer, Science '...should be read and regularly consulted by anybody interested in adaptive radiation, in natural selection, and in speciation' Konrad Bachmann, Plant Systematics and EvolutionMuch of life's diversity was generated by adaptive radiation - concentrated bursts of evolution during which new species rapidly formed, diverging from a common ancestor in ecology and phenotype. There are many living examples of this spectacular phenomenon - the most famous include the East African cichlid fishes, the Hawaiian silverswords, and of course, Darwin's Galápagos finches. This book evaluates the causes of adaptive radiation, focusing on the 'ecological' theory, a body of ideas that began with Darwin. The author re- evaluates the ecological theory, along with its most significant extensions and challenges, in the light of all the recent evidence. This important book is the first full exploration of the causes of adaptive radiation to be written for decades, by one of the world's leading young evolutionary biologists.

Lizards in an Evolutionary Tree

Lizards in an Evolutionary Tree
Author: Jonathan B. Losos
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 528
Release: 2011-02-09
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 0520269845

"In a book both beautifully illustrated and deeply informative, Jonathan Losos, a leader in evolutionary ecology, celebrates and analyzes the diversity of the natural world that the fascinating anoline lizards epitomize. Readers who are drawn to nature by its beauty or its intellectual challenges—or both—will find his book rewarding."—Douglas J. Futuyma, State University of New York, Stony Brook "This book is destined to become a classic. It is scholarly, informative, stimulating, and highly readable, and will inspire a generation of students."—Peter R. Grant, author of How and Why Species Multiply: The Radiation of Darwin's Finches "Anoline lizards experienced a spectacular adaptive radiation in the dynamic landscape of the Caribbean islands. The radiation has extended over a long period of time and has featured separate radiations on the larger islands. Losos, the leading active student of these lizards, presents an integrated and synthetic overview, summarizing the enormous and multidimensional research literature. This engaging book makes a wonderful example of an adaptive radiation accessible to all, and the lavish illustrations, especially the photographs, make the anoles come alive in one's mind."—David Wake, University of California, Berkeley "This magnificent book is a celebration and synthesis of one of the most eventful adaptive radiations known. With disarming prose and personal narrative Jonathan Losos shows how an obsession, beginning at age ten, became a methodology and a research plan that, together with studies by colleagues and predecessors, culminated in many of the principles we now regard as true about the origins and maintenance of biodiversity. This work combines rigorous analysis and glorious natural history in a unique volume that stands with books by the Grants on Darwin's finches among the most informed and engaging accounts ever written on the evolution of a group of organisms in nature."—Dolph Schluter, author of The Ecology of Adaptive Radiation

Events of Increased Biodiversity

Events of Increased Biodiversity
Author: Pascal Neige
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 147
Release: 2015-05-14
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 0081004745

The fossil record offers a surprising image: that of evolutionary radiations characterized by intense increases in cash or by the sudden diversification of a single species group, while others stagnate or die out. In a modern world, science carries an often pessimistic message, surrounded by studies of global warming and its effects, extinction crisis, emerging diseases and invasive species. This book fuels frequent "optimism" of the sudden increase in biodiversity by exploring this natural phenomenon. Events of Increased Biodiversity: Evolutionary Radiations in the Fossil Record explores this natural phenomenon of adaptive radiation including its effect on the increase in biodiversity events, their contribution to the changes and limitations in the fossil record, and examines the links between ecology and paleontology's study of radiation. - Details examples of evolutionary radiations - Explicitly addresses the effect of adaptation driven by ecological opportunity - Examines the link between ecology and paleontology's study of adaptive radiation

Bromeliaceae

Bromeliaceae
Author: David H. Benzing
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 374
Release: 2000-04-06
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9780521430319

This book covers bromeliad biology, rather than cultivation.

Molecular Evolution and Adaptive Radiation

Molecular Evolution and Adaptive Radiation
Author: Thomas J. Givnish
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 652
Release: 2000-05-08
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780521779296

This volume surveys advances in the study of adaptive radiation showing how molecular characters can be used to analyze the origin and pattern of diversification within a lineage in a non-circular fashion.

Opossums

Opossums
Author: Robert S. Voss
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Total Pages: 327
Release: 2021-03-09
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1421439786

Peering into every biological facet of the lives of these long-neglected mammals, the volume includes; introductory chapters explaining the paleontological and biogeographic context for opossum evolution; an overview of the extant fauna, which includes over 100 species in 18 genera ; a section devoted to opossum phenotypes: morphology, physiology, and behavior; detailed information on opossum natural history, including habitats, diets, predators, and parasites; in-depth and novel interpretations of opossums' adaptive radiation in a phylogenetic contextIntended for undergraduate biology majors, graduate students, and research professionals, this coherent and original portrait of opossums will be of particular interest to mammalogists, evolutionary biologists, and Neotropical field biologists as well as biomedical researchers working with Monodelphis domestica as a model organism.

Ecological Speciation

Ecological Speciation
Author: Patrik Nosil
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2012-03-15
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0191628026

The origin of biological diversity, via the formation of new species, can be inextricably linked to adaptation to the ecological environment. Specifically, ecological processes are central to the formation of new species when barriers to gene flow (reproductive isolation) evolve between populations as a result of ecologically-based divergent natural selection. This process of 'ecological speciation' has seen a large body of particularly focused research in the last 10-15 years, and a review and synthesis of the theoretical and empirical literature is now timely. The book begins by clarifying what ecological speciation is, its alternatives, and the predictions that can be used to test for it. It then reviews the three components of ecological speciation and discusses the geography and genomic basis of the process. A final chapter highlights future research directions, describing the approaches and experiments which might be used to conduct that future work. The ecological and genetic literature is integrated throughout the text with the goal of shedding new insight into the speciation process, particularly when the empirical data is then further integrated with theory.

How and Why Species Multiply

How and Why Species Multiply
Author: Peter R. Grant
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2011-05-29
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 0691149992

Trace the evolutionary history of fourteen different species of finches on the Galapagos Islands that were studied by Charles Darwin.