Frogs, Flies, and Dandelions: Speciation-The Evolution of New Species: The Making of Species - Rilegato

Schilthuizen, Menno

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0198503938 ISBN 13: 9780198503934

Casa editrice: Oxford Univ Pr, 2001

Riassunto

The earth is home to a wild proliferation of species, millions of life-forms that come in a spectacular--and often bizarre--array of sizes, shapes, and colors. But what triggers this fantastic explosion of life? How does one species split into another? Even Charles Darwin was baffled before such questions, calling them "The Mystery of Mysteries."
In this fascinating, witty, and vividly written book, Menno Schilthuizen illuminates these questions, showing how biologists and zoologists over the last two centuries have responded to them, assessing our current knowledge of species, and proposing his own solution to Darwin's mystery. Using the sometimes-vicious academic debates and the powerful personalities of scientists as background, Schilthuizen explores the meandering path of species research and sets it out in the clearest possible terms. From looking at how we define a species, to exploring how geographical isolation and sexual selection contribute to making new species, to showing how species may appear gradually or instantaneously, Frogs, Flies, and Dandelions offers a comprehensive account of this evolutionary drama. Along the way, we get to know a remarkable cast of characters from the plant and animal kingdoms, from the copper-loving monkey flower to sockeye salmon, fire-bellied toads, lyrebirds, apple maggot flies, and many others. Most important, we get a clear picture of all the conditions necessary for one species to give birth to another.
Written with engaging panache, and illuminating an area of study intensely relevant to any assessment of the earth's biodiversity, Frogs, Flies, and Dandelions will appeal to everyone--scientist and layperson alike--curious about nature and animal behavior.

Su questo libro

L'autore:

Menno Schilthuizen is Associate Professor in the Tropical Biology and Conservation Unit, at the University Malaysia Sabah, Kota Kinabulu, Malaysia.

Product Description:

Book by Schilthuizen Menno

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Oxford Univ Pr
• Data di pubblicazione: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0198503938
• ISBN 13: 9780198503934
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero di pagine: 245