Edwin H. Colbert Honorary Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology The Museum of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff, Arizona Curator Emeritus The American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York Professor Emeritus Columbia University, New York, New York Michael Morales Assistant Professor of Paleontology and Director of the Johnston Geology Museum Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas Eli C. Minkoff Professor of Biology Chair, Department of Biology Bates College, Lewiston, Maine WILEY-LISS 2001 FROM THE BACK COVER: Vertebrate evolution is studied through comparative anatomy and functional morphology of existing vertebrates as well as fossil records. Since the publication of the previous edition of Colbert's Evolution of the Vertebrates: A History of the Backboned Animals Through Time, there have been significant advances in the knowledge surrounding backboned animals. This latest edition of the classic text is completely revised to offer the most recent discoveries in this continually evolving field of science. Covering the various aspects of vertebrate life, from skeletal system to ecology, behavior, and physiology, the Fifth Edition includes new sections on conodonts, dinosaurs, primates, and the origin of birds, and discusses: * Analysis of morphological and molecular data * Early diversification of vertebrates * The evolution of dinosaurs * The origin of mammals * Early ruling reptiles * Basic adaptation of ungulates Colbert's Evolution of the Vertebrates, Fifth Edition carries on its legacy as an invaluable reference for professionals in evolutionary biology and paleontology, as well as an ideal textbook for students in those fields. CONTENTS: Preface Preface to the First Edition One: Introduction 1 Two: Jawless vertebrates 21 Three: Acanthodians and Placoderms 35 Four: Sharklike Fishes 49 Five: Bony Fishes 59 Six: Lobe-Fin Fishes and the Transition to Land 73 Seven: Early Paleozoic Faunas 87 Eight: Amphibians 95 Nine: The Advent of Reptiles 121 Ten: Late Paleozoic Faunas 139 Eleven: Lepidosaurs 149 Twelve: Aquatic Reptiles 157 Thirteen: Early Ruling Reptiles 171 Fourteen: Triumph of the Dinosaurs 187 Fifteen: Aeria1 Reptiles 217 Sixteen: Birds 225 Seventeen: Years of the Dinosaurs 239 Eighteen: Mammal-Like Reptiles 253 Nineteen: Beginning of the Mammals 273 Twenty: Marsupials 293 Twenty-one: Introduction to the Placentals 305 Twenty-two: Early Placental Diversification 317 Twenty-three: Primates and Their Kin 331 The Archonta 332 Scandentia 332 The Bats 333 Dermoptera 335 The Origin of the Primates 335 Primate Characters 337 A Classification of the Primates 338 Plesiadapiformes 338 Strepsirhini-The Adapids, Lemurs, and Lorises 340 Haplorhini 341 The Tarsioids 341 Platyrhini-The New World Monkeys 342 Catarrhini-The Old World Monkeys, Apes, and Humans 343 The Family Hominidae 348 Twenty-four: Rodents and Rabbits 359 Twenty-five: Creodonts and Carnivores 373 Twenty-six: Whales and Dolphins 391 Twenty-seven: Primitive Ungulates 399 Twenty-eight: Artiodactyls 409 Twenty-nine: South American Ungulates 439 Thirty: Perissodactyls 451 Thirty-one: Elephants and Their Kin 477 Thirty-two: Cenozoic Faunas 495 A Classification of the Phylum Chordata 509 Bibliography 521 Key to Abbreviations of Bone Names used in Illustrations 533 Sources and Credits for Illustrations 535 Index 541 WHERE TO ORDER: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Distribution Center 1 Wiley Drive Somerset, NJ 08875-1272 Phone: (732) 469-4400 or (800) 225-5945 Fax: (732) 302-2300 E-mail: bookinfo@wiley.com
PRICE: $145.00 (hardbound) ISBN: 0-471-38461-5
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