Vertebrate Palaeontology
Beschreibung
All-new edition of the world's leading vertebrate palaeontology textbook, now addressing key evolutionary transitions and ecological drivers for vertebrate evolution
Richly illustrated with colour illustrations of the key species and cladograms of all major vertebrate taxa, Vertebrate Palaeontology provides a complete account of the evolution of vertebrates, including macroevolutionary trends and drivers that have shaped their organs and body plans, key transitions such as terrestrialization, endothermy, flight and impacts of mass extinctions on biodiversity and ecological drivers behind the origin of chordates and vertebrates, their limbs, jaws, feathers, and hairs.
This revised and updated fifth edition features numerous recent examples of breakthrough discoveries in line with the current macroevolutionary approach in palaeontology research, such as the evolutionary drivers that have shaped vertebrate development. Didactical features have been enhanced and include new functional and developmental feature spreads, key questions, and extensive references to useful websites.
Written by a leading academic in the field, Vertebrate Palaeontology discusses topics such as:
- Palaeozoic fishes, including Cambrian vertebrates, placoderms ('armour-plated monsters'), Pan-Chondrichthyes such as sharks and rays, and Osteichthyes ('bony fishes')
- The first tetrapods, covering problems of life on land, diversity of Carboniferous tetrapods and temnospondyls and reptiliomorphs following the Carboniferous
- Mesozoic reptiles, such as Testudinata (turtles), Crocodylomorpha, Pterosauria, Dinosauria, great sea dragons and Lepidosauria (lizards and snakes)
- Mammals of the southern and northern hemispheres, covering Xenarthra (sloths, anteaters), Afrotheria (African mammals), Laurasiatheria (bats, ungulates, carnivores), and Euarchontoglires (rodents, primates)
A highly comprehensive and completely up-to-date reference on vertebrate evolution, Vertebrate Palaeontology is an ideal learning aid for palaeontology courses in biology and geology departments. The text is also highly valuable to enthusiasts who want to experience the flavour of how modern research in the field is conducted.
Weitere Details
Weitere Ausgaben
Andere Ausgaben
Person
Michael J. Benton, OBE, FRS, is Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the University of Bristol. He is particularly interested in early reptiles, Triassic dinosaurs and macroevolution, and has published over 60 books and 700 scientific articles. He is part of one of the most active palaeontology research groups in the world and has supervised more than 80 PhD students.
Inhalt
List of Boxes xvii
Preface xxi
About the Companion Website xxv
1 Vertebrates Originate 1
Introduction 1
1.1 Sea Squirts and the Lancelet 2
1.2 Ambulacraria: Echinoderms and Hemichordates 4
1.3 Deuterostome Relationships 6
1.4 Chordate Origins 9
1.5 Vertebrate Origins: Worm or Bag? 15
1.6 Further Reading 20
Questions for Future Research 20
References 21
2 How to Study Fossil Vertebrates 25
Introduction 25
2.1 Digging Up Bones 25
2.2 Publication and Professionalism 32
2.3 Geology and Fossil Vertebrates 37
2.4 Biology and Fossil Vertebrates 46
2.5 Discovering Phylogeny 53
2.6 Macroevolution 56
2.7 Further Reading 59
References 59
3 Early Palaeozoic Fishes 63
Introduction 63
3.1 Cambrian Vertebrates 63
3.2 Vertebrate Hard Tissues 65
3.3 The Jawless Fishes 67
3.4 Origin of Jaws 80
3.5 Placoderms: Armour-Plated Monsters 82
3.6 Pan-Chondrichthyes: Sharks, Rays, Acanthodians 90
3.7 Early Fish Biogeography and Environments 92
3.8 Osteichthyes: The Bony Fishes 94
3.9 Early Fish Evolution and Mass Extinction 106
3.10 Further Reading 107
Questions for Future Research 108
References 108
4 The First Tetrapods 115
Introduction 115
4.1 Problems of Life on Land 115
4.2 Devonian Tetrapods 120
4.3 The Carboniferous World 128
4.4 Diversity of Carboniferous Tetrapods 129
4.5 Temnospondyls and Reptiliomorphs After the Carboniferous 139
4.6 Evolution of the Modern Amphibians 144
4.7 Further Reading 150
Questions for Future Research 150
References 150
5 Evolution of Early Amniotes 157
Introduction 157
5.1 Hylonomus and Paleothyris - Biology of the First Amniotes 157
5.2 Amniote Adaptations for Terrestrial Life 160
5.3 The Permian World 167
5.4 The Parareptiles 169
5.5 The Eureptiles 174
5.6 Early Synapsid Evolution 176
5.7 The Permian-Triassic Mass Extinction 188
5.8 Further Reading 192
Questions for Future Research 192
References 193
6 The Triassic Revolution 197
Introduction 197
6.1 The Triassic World and the Recovery of Life 197
6.2 Triassic Marine Reptiles 202
6.3 Evolution of the Archosauromorphs 211
6.4 Origin of the Dinosaurs 220
6.5 Amniote Evolution in the Triassic 224
6.6 Further Reading 235
Questions for Future Research 235
References 236
7 Evolution of Fishes After the Devonian 243
Introduction 243
7.1 The Early Chimaeras and Sharks 243
7.2 Post-Palaeozoic Chondrichthyan Radiation 251
7.3 The Early Bony Fishes 255
7.4 Radiation of the Teleosts 267
7.5 Post-Devonian Evolution of Fishes 276
7.6 Further Reading 279
Questions for Future Research 279
References 280
8 Dinosaurs 287
Introduction 287
8.1 Biology of Plateosaurus 287
8.2 The Jurassic and Cretaceous World 289
8.3 Saurischians and Theropod Diversity 290
8.4 The Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs 303
8.5 The Diversity of Ornithischian Dinosaurs 309
8.6 Were the Dinosaurs Warm-Blooded or Not? 326
8.7 Further Reading 333
Questions for Future Research 334
References 334
9 The Mesozoic Reptiles 343
Introduction 343
9.1 Testudinata: The Turtles 343
9.2 Crocodylomorpha 353
9.3 Pterosauria 359
9.4 The Great Sea Dragons 367
9.5 Lepidosauria: Lizards and Snakes 374
9.6 The End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction 383
9.7 Further Reading 390
Questions for Future Research 390
References 390
10 The Birds 401
Introduction 401
10.1 The Origin of Birds 401
10.2 The Origin of Bird Flight 412
10.3 Cretaceous Birds, With and Without Teeth 418
10.4 The Radiation of Modern Birds: Explosion or Long Fuse? 429
10.5 Flightless Birds: Palaeognathae 432
10.6 Neognathae 435
10.7 The Three-Phase Diversification of Birds 447
10.8 Further Reading 448
Questions for Future Research 448
References 449
11 Mammals: Origins and Southern Hemisphere Evolution 459
Introduction 459
11.1 Cynodonts and the Acquisition of Mammaliaform Characters 459
11.2 The First Mammaliaforms 472
11.3 The Mesozoic Mammaliaforms 475
11.4 Marsupials Down Under 492
11.5 South American Mammals - A World Apart 497
11.6 Afrotheria and the Break-up of Gondwana 506
11.7 Further Reading 512
Questions for Future Research 513
References 513
12 Mammals of the Northern Hemisphere 525
Introduction 525
12.1 Evolution of Modern Mammals 525
12.2 Boreoeutherian Beginnings: The Palaeocene in the Northern Hemisphere 529
12.3 Early Diverging Laurasiatherians: Eulipotyphla 537
12.4 Scrotifera: Bats and Relatives 540
12.5 Cetartiodactyla: Cattle, Pigs and Whales 540
12.6 Zooamata: Horses, Carnivores, and Pangolins 550
12.7 Glires: Rodents, Rabbits, and Relatives 563
12.8 Archonta: Primates, Tree Shrews, and Flying Lemurs 568
12.9 Ice Age Extinction of Large Mammals 569
12.10 Further Reading 574
Questions for Future Research 574
References 574
13 Human Evolution 585
Introduction 585
13.1 What Are the Primates? 585
13.2 The Fossil Record of Early Primates 586
13.3 Anthropoidea: Monkeys and Apes 592
13.4 Hominoidea: The Apes 597
13.5 Evolution of Human Characteristics 603
13.6 The Early Stages of Human Evolution 605
13.7 The Past Two Million Years of Human Evolution 611
13.8 Further Reading 620
Questions for Future Research 620
References 620
Appendix: Classification of the Vertebrates 629
Glossary 641
Index 647
