Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea

Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea PDF Author: William J. Sanders
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1351645218
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 821

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Book Description
This book details the long, diverse, and complex phylogenetic history of elephants and their fossil relatives (the Proboscidea), whose origin is deeply embedded some 60 million years ago in Africa. Most of the major evolutionary events of proboscideans occurred in Africa, and these are examined in their geological, paleoecological, geographic, and faunal contexts. Updated information about feeding adaptations, taxonomy and systematics, genetics, and site occurrences is included and summarized in tables, figures, and charts. This is the first comprehensive review of African proboscideans and illustrates the need to more actively protect elephants and ensure their survival in modern ecosystems. Key Features: Provides a comprehensive systematic review of the African proboscidean fossil record Includes a summary of taxonomy, geochronology, biogeography and morphology Documents major faunal events including those associated with hominin origins Synthesizes new data from genomic, isotopic, and microware analyses Emphasizes the role of elephants in ecosystems and the importance of conservation

Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea

Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea PDF Author: William J. Sanders
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1351645218
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 821

Get Book

Book Description
This book details the long, diverse, and complex phylogenetic history of elephants and their fossil relatives (the Proboscidea), whose origin is deeply embedded some 60 million years ago in Africa. Most of the major evolutionary events of proboscideans occurred in Africa, and these are examined in their geological, paleoecological, geographic, and faunal contexts. Updated information about feeding adaptations, taxonomy and systematics, genetics, and site occurrences is included and summarized in tables, figures, and charts. This is the first comprehensive review of African proboscideans and illustrates the need to more actively protect elephants and ensure their survival in modern ecosystems. Key Features: Provides a comprehensive systematic review of the African proboscidean fossil record Includes a summary of taxonomy, geochronology, biogeography and morphology Documents major faunal events including those associated with hominin origins Synthesizes new data from genomic, isotopic, and microware analyses Emphasizes the role of elephants in ecosystems and the importance of conservation

Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea

Evolution and Fossil Record of African Proboscidea PDF Author: William J. Sanders
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1482254778
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 371

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Book Description
This book details the long, diverse, and complex phylogenetic history of elephants and their fossil relatives (the Proboscidea), whose origin is deeply embedded some 60 million years ago in Africa. Most of the major evolutionary events of proboscideans occurred in Africa, and these are examined in their geological, paleoecological, geographic, and faunal contexts. Updated information about feeding adaptations, taxonomy and systematics, genetics, and site occurrences is included and summarized in tables, figures, and charts. This is the first comprehensive review of African proboscideans and illustrates the need to more actively protect elephants and ensure their survival in modern ecosystems. Key Features: Provides a comprehensive systematic review of the African proboscidean fossil record Includes a summary of taxonomy, geochronology, biogeography and morphology Documents major faunal events including those associated with hominin origins Synthesizes new data from genomic, isotopic, and microware analyses Emphasizes the role of elephants in ecosystems and the importance of conservation

Evolution of African Mammals

Evolution of African Mammals PDF Author: Vincent J. Maglio
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 664

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Book Description


Evolving Eden

Evolving Eden PDF Author: Alan Turner
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 9780231119443
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
The Garden of Eden as the ideal and untouched site of life's creation persists in popular thought, even as we have uncovered a lengthy fossil record and developed a scientific understanding of evolution. The continent of Africa is a good candidate for Eden: its generally warm climate, rich vegetation, and variety of animal species lend themselves easily to such a comparison. Yet in the time since the first primates appeared millions of years ago, Africa has undergone profound alterations in physical geography, climate, and biota. Linking the evidence of the past with that of the present, this exquisitely illustrated guide examines the evolution of the mammalian fauna of Africa within the context of dramatic changes over the course of more than 30 million years of primate presence. The book covers such topics as dating, continental drift, and global climate change and the likely motors of evolution as well as the physical evolution of the African continent, including present and past climates, and the major determinants of plant and mammal distributions. The authors discuss human evolution as a part of the larger pattern of mammalian evolution while responding to the unique interest that we have in our own past. The meticulous reconstructions of fossil mammals in this book are the result of detailed anatomical research. Restorations of mammalian musculature and appearance take into account the affinities between fossil forms and extant species in order to make well-founded inferences about unpreserved animal attributes. Environmental reconstructions benefit from the authors' visits to more than a dozen wildlife preserves in five African countries as well as the use of an extensive database of published studies on the evolution of landscapes on the continent. A fascinating read and a visual feast, Evolving Eden lays the foundation for a deeper appreciation of contemporary African wildlife.

Fossil Vertebrates of Greece Vol. 1

Fossil Vertebrates of Greece Vol. 1 PDF Author: Evangelos Vlachos
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030683982
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 715

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Book Description
This 2-volume set provides a state-of-the-art study of the fossil record and taxonomy of the main vertebrate groups from Greece. Greece stands between 3 continents and its vertebrate fossil record is of great importance for paleontological and evolutionary studies in Europe, Asia and Africa. Fossils from classic, world-famous localities (e.g., Pikermi, Samos) form an essential part of the collections of the most important museums in the world and have been studied by numerous scientists. Recent paleontological research led to the discovery and study of numerous new sites. The volumes contain a taxonomic review of all named and identified taxa, their taxonomic history and current status, as well as historical, phylogenetic and biogeographic information. Volume 1 contains a synopsis of the fossil record and taxonomy of important groups of vertebrates represented in the fossil record of Greece. The volume deals with some of the early splitting clades, including the basal and enigmatic conodonts and basal tetrapods like fishes, amphibians, and reptiles like lizards, snakes, crocodiles, turtles and tortoises. The second part of the volume deals with basal mammalian clades, some of which are quite characteristic for the fossil record of the country: aardwarks, hyraxes, proboscideans, elephants and mammoths, sea cows, rodents, and lagomorphs. The volume ends with special chapters on the primate fossil record of the country, including some of our most recent and distant relatives.

Cenozoic Mammals of Africa

Cenozoic Mammals of Africa PDF Author: Lars Werdelin
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520257219
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1008

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Book Description
"This impressively comprehensive volume is a long-awaited and worthy successor to the now outdated 1978 classic, Evolution of African Mammals. A must-have reference work for everyone interested in mammalian evolution." David Pilbeam, Harvard University and the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology --

The Proboscidea

The Proboscidea PDF Author: Jeheskel Shoshani
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780198546528
Category : Paleoecology
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The Proboscidea, of which only two species of elephant survive today, were one of the great mammalian orders of the Cenozoic. Their success over evolutionary time is reflected by their morphological and taxonomic diversity, their nearly worldwide distribution on every continent exceptAustralia and Antarctica, and their persistence through nearly fifty million years. Their great past ability to migrate and to adapt to changing climatic conditions and interspecific competition provides a unique laboratory for the testing of evolutionary theories and development of new concepts.This is the first complete treatise on the evolution and palaeoecology of this group for half a century. It reviews their classification and phylogeny, the early differentiation of proboscideans, the major adaptive radiations and their evolutionary patterns, and the origins and current status ofextant elephant species. Written by leading international experts, this is a major study documenting the record of terrestrial biodiversity.

A Fossil History of Southern African Land Mammals

A Fossil History of Southern African Land Mammals PDF Author: D. Margaret Avery
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108480888
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 325

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Book Description
A comprehensive reference on the taxonomy and distribution in time and space of all currently recognized southern African fossil mammals. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

African Genesis

African Genesis PDF Author: Sally C. Reynolds
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107019958
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 599

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Book Description
This book reviews key themes and developments in palaeoanthropology, exploring their impact on our understanding of human origins in Africa.

Vascular Plants and Paleobotany

Vascular Plants and Paleobotany PDF Author: Philip Stewart
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1466558636
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
This title includes a number of Open Access chapters. This book provides an important collection of new research that sheds light on many aspects of the evolutionary patterns of gymnosperms, angiosperms, and pteridophtes. The book includes a complete chloroplast genome sequence study and describes a method that induces the systemic silencing of target genes in the Ceratopteris gametophyte. It presents a study of how herbicide treatments reduce fern densities and create the establishment of regeneration. It also analyzes an EST dataset from G. biloba that reveals genes potentially unique to gymnosperms and includes a study of episodic rate acceleration in the ancestral grasses.