The factors that influenced the evolution of the vertebrates are compared with the importance of variation and selection that Darwin emphasised in this broad study of the patterns and forces of evolutionary change.

The average person can name more bird species than they think, but do we really know what a bird “species” is? This open access book takes up several fascinating aspects of bird life to elucidate this basic concept in biology. From genetic and physiological basics to the phenomena of bird song and bird migration, it analyzes various interactions of birds – with their environment and other birds. Lastly, it shows imminent threats to birds in the Anthropocene, the era of global human impact. Although it seemed to be easy to define bird species, the advent of modern methods has challenged species definition and led to a multidisciplinary approach to classifying birds. One outstanding new toolbox comes with the more and more reasonably priced acquisition of whole-genome sequences that allow causative analyses of how bird species diversify. Speciation has reached a final stage when daughter species are reproductively isolated, but this stage is not easily detectable from the phenotype we observe. Culturally transmitted traits such as bird song seem to speed up speciation processes, while another behavioral trait, migration, helps birds to find food resources, and also coincides with higher chances of reaching new, inhabitable areas. In general, distribution is a major key to understanding speciation in birds. Examples of ecological speciation can be found in birds, and the constant interaction of birds with their biotic environment also contributes to evolutionary changes. In the Anthropocene, birds are confronted with rapid changes that are highly threatening for some species. Climate change forces birds to move their ranges, but may also disrupt well-established interactions between climate, vegetation, and food sources. This book brings together various disciplines involved in observing bird species come into existence, modify, and vanish. It is a rich resource for bird enthusiasts who want to understand various processes at the cutting edge of current research in more detail. At the same time it offers students the opportunity to see primarily unconnected, but booming big-data approaches such as genomics and biogeography meet in a topic of broad interest. Lastly, the book enables conservationists to better understand the uncertainties surrounding “species” as entities of protection.

In his extraordinary book, Mayr fully explored, synthesized, and evaluated man's knowledge about the nature of animal species and the part they play in the process of evolution. Now, in this long-awaited abridged edition, Mayr's definitive work is made available to the interested nonspecialist, the college student, and the general reader.

In Speciation in Birds, Trevor Price, a University of Chicago professor and leading expert in the field, has written the most authoritative and modern synthesis on the subject to date. In clear and engaging prose and through beautiful illustrations, Price shows us why the field is as exciting and vibrant as ever. He evaluates the roles of natural selection and sexual selection. He asks how speciation contributes to some of the great patterns in species diversity such as the large number of species in the tropics, and the many endemic species on isolated islands. Throughout the book, Price emphasizes the integration of behavior, ecology, and genetics.

A world of categones devmd of spirit waits for life to return. Saul Bellow, Humboldt's Gift The stock-in-trade of communicating hypotheses about the historical path of evolution is a graphical representation called a phylogenetic tree. In most such graphics, pairs of branches diverge from other branches, successively marching across abstract time toward the present. To each branch is tied a tag with a name, a binominal symbol that functions as does the name given to an individual human being. On phylogenetic trees the names symbolize species. What exactly do these names signify? What kind of information is communicated when we claim to have knowledge of the following types? "Tetonius mathewzi was ancestral to Pseudotetonius ambiguus. " "The sample of fossils attributed to Homo habzlis is too variable to contain only one species. " "Interbreeding populations of savanna baboons all belong to Papio anubis. " "Hylobates lar and H. pileatus interbreed in zones of geographic overlap. " While there is nearly universal agreement that the notion of the speczes is fundamental to our understanding of how evolution works, there is a very wide range of opinion on the conceptual content and meaning of such particular statements regarding species. This is because, oddly enough, evolutionary biolo gists are quite far from agreement on what a species is, how it attains this status, and what role it plays in evolution over the long term.

Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy Evolution and Adaptation Second Edition Ann B. Butler and William Hodos The Second Edition of this landmark text presents a broad survey of comparative vertebrate neuroanatomy at the introductory level, representing a unique contribution to the field of evolutionary neurobiology. It has been extensively revised and updated, with substantially improved figures and diagrams that are used generously throughout the text. Through analysis of the variation in brain structure and function between major groups of vertebrates, readers can gain insight into the evolutionary history of the nervous system. The text is divided into three sections: * Introduction to evolution and variation, including a survey of cell structure, embryological development, and anatomical organization of the central nervous system; phylogeny and diversity of brain structures; and an overview of various theories of brain evolution * Systematic, comprehensive survey of comparative neuroanatomy across all major groups of vertebrates * Overview of vertebrate brain evolution, which integrates the complete text, highlights diversity and common themes, broadens perspective by a comparison with brain structure and evolution of invertebrate brains, and considers recent data and theories of the evolutionary origin of the brain in the earliest vertebrates, including a recently proposed model of the origin of the brain in the earliest vertebrates that has received strong support from newly discovered fossil evidence Ample material drawn from the latest research has been integrated into the text and highlighted in special feature boxes, including recent views on homology, cranial nerve organization and evolution, the relatively large and elaborate brains of birds in correlation with their complex cognitive abilities, and the current debate on forebrain evolution across reptiles, birds, and mammals. Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy is geared to upper-level undergraduate and graduate students in neuroanatomy, but anyone interested in the anatomy of the nervous system and how it corresponds to the way that animals function in the world will find this text fascinating.