The Phylogeny of Certain Cerithiidæ, Vol. 21 (Classic Reprint) PDF Download

Author: Elvira Wood
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781332177752
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 136

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Book Description
Excerpt from The Phylogeny of Certain Cerithiidae, Vol. 21 The literature of the genus Cerithium is already extensive, including papers which treat the subject from both the paleontological and the zoological point of view. The genus is treated to a greater or less extent in all general works on conchology, but such treatment is confined to descriptions of the genus and of the different species referred to it, without any attempt to trace phylogenetic relationships, and the same is true, with few exceptions, of paleontological papers on the subject. Recently M. Cossmann [1906] has published a monograph on the Cerithiidae, in which he takes account of the relationship between different forms and presents an elaborate classification of the various genera and sub-genera included within the family. M. Cossmann's conclusions are largely based on characters appearing late in the life history of the individual, and he lays especial stress upon the various features of the aperture. The present paper, being founded upon a different method of work, as explained below, necessarily reaches conclusions somewhat different from those of M. Cossmann. A complete bibliography of the works consulted in the preparation of this paper is given on pages 86 to 91. The principles of phylogenetic development discovered and formulated by Hackel, Hyatt, Cope and others have been successfully applied in studies of the phylogeny of several groups of greater or less extent, such as Hyatt's studies on the Cephalopoda, Jackson's on the Echinodermata and Grabau's on the Fusidae. The present paper is an attempt to apply these principles in working out the relationships of such species of Cerithium as could be obtained. The fundamental law upon which all the work is based is the law of morphogenesis, which has been stated by Hyatt as follows: A natural classification may be made by means of a system of analysis in which the individual is the unit of comparison, because its life in all its phases, morphological and physiological, healthy or pathological, embryo, larva, adolescent, adult and old (ontogeny), correlates with the morphological and physiological history of the group to which it belongs (phylogeny). According to this principle, a study of the life history of individuals furnishes a ready and most reliable means of tracing the development of the group to which they belong. Hence, in the present investigation, the starting point has been the study of individual development and a comparison of the records thus obtained. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works."