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Avian Ancestors
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Book Synopsis Avian Ancestors by : Federico Agnolin
Download or read book Avian Ancestors written by Federico Agnolin and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-02-26 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although consensus exists among researchers that birds evolved from coelurosaurian theropods, paleontologists still debate the identification of the group of coelurosaurians that most closely approaches the common ancestor of birds. The last 20 years witnessed the discovery of a wide array of avian-like theropods that has considerably amplified the anatomical disparity among deinonychosaurians, some of which resemble Archaeopteryx more than Deinonychus. Among these newly discovered theropods that show remarkable bird-like characteristics are the four-winged theropods Microraptor and Anchiornis, and the unenlagiids Unenlagia, Buitreraptor, and Rahonavis. A bizarre group of minute-sized coelurosaurs, the Scansoriopterygidae, also exhibits some avian similarities that lead some authors to interpret them as more closely related to birds than other dinosaurs. With the aim to explore the phylogenetic relationships of these coelurosaurians and birds, we merged recently published integrative databases, resulting in significant changes in the topological distribution of taxa within Paraves. We present evidence that Dromaeosauridae, Microraptoria, Unenlagiidae, and Anchiornis + Xiaotingia form successive sister taxa of Aves, and that the Scansoriopterygidae are basal coelurosaurians not closely related to birds. The implications in the evolutionary sequence of anatomical characters leading to birds, including the origin of flight, are also considered in light of this new phylogenetic hypothesis.
Book Synopsis The Origin and Evolution of Birds by : Alan Feduccia
Download or read book The Origin and Evolution of Birds written by Alan Feduccia and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of all that is known about the origin of birds and of avian flight. It draws on fossil evidence and studies of the structure and biochemistry of living birds to present knowledge and data on avian evolution and to propose a new model of this evolutionary process.
Download or read book Avian Evolution written by Gerald Mayr and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-10-31 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Knowledge of the evolutionary history of birds has much improved in recent decades. Fossils from critical time periods are being described at unprecedented rates and modern phylogenetic analyses have provided a framework for the interrelationships of the extant groups. This book gives an overview of the avian fossil record and its paleobiological significance, and it is the only up-to-date textbook that covers both Mesozoic and more modern-type Cenozoic birds in some detail. The reader is introduced to key features of basal avians and the morphological transformations that have occurred in the evolution towards modern birds. An account of the Cenozoic fossil record sheds light on the biogeographic history of the extant avian groups and discusses fossils in the context of current phylogenetic hypotheses. This review of the evolutionary history of birds not only addresses students and established researchers, but it may also be a useful source of information for anyone else with an interest in the evolution of birds and a moderate background in biology and geology.
Download or read book Mesozoic Birds written by Luis M. Chiappe and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2002-12-05 with total page 534 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Mesozoic Birds is the first book to bring together world-renowned specialists on fossil birds and their importance to avian origins and, more importantly, it stresses a unified approach (cladistics) and presents the most anatomically detailed analyses available to date. No other study or collection of studies has ever done so much. How could the project not be welcomed by its audience of paleontologists, ornithologists, and evolutionary biologists!"—David Weishampel, editor of The Dinosauria "This is the first comprehensive volume dedicated to the relationships and evolution of the birds that lived during the Age of Dinosaurs. Its wealth of information and its diversity of viewpoints will ensure that this indispensable volume is used and discussed for many years to come."—Kevin Padian, University of California, Berkeley
Book Synopsis The Rise of Birds by : Sankar Chatterjee
Download or read book The Rise of Birds written by Sankar Chatterjee and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The most comprehensive account of the origin of ancient and modern birds—the "living dinosaurs." A small set of fossilized bones discovered almost thirty years ago led paleontologist Sankar Chatterjee on a lifelong quest to understand their place in our understanding of the history of life. They were clearly the bones of something unusual, a bird-like creature that lived long, long ago in the age of dinosaurs. He called it Protoavis, and the animal that owned these bones quickly became a contender for the title of "oldest known bird." In 1997, Chatterjee published his findings in the first edition of The Rise of Birds. Since then Chatterjee and his colleagues have searched the world for more transitional bird fossils. And they have found them. This second edition of The Rise of Birds brings together a treasure trove of fossils that tell us far more about the evolution of birds than we once dreamed possible. With no blind allegiance to what he once thought he knew, Chatterjee devours the new evidence and lays out the most compelling version of the birth and evolution of the avian form ever attempted. He takes us from Texas to Spain, China, Mongolia, Madagascar, Australia, Antarctica, and Argentina. He shows how, in the "Cretaceous Pompeii" of China, he was able to reconstruct the origin and evolution of flight of early birds from the feathered dinosaurs that lay among thousands of other amazing fossils. Chatterjee takes us to where long-hidden bird fossils dwell. His compelling, occasionally controversial, revelations—accompanied by spectacular illustrations—are a must-read for anyone with a serious interest in the evolution of "the feathered dinosaurs," from vertebrate paleontologists and ornithologists to naturalists and birders.
Book Synopsis Pathway of the Birds by : Andrew Crowe
Download or read book Pathway of the Birds written by Andrew Crowe and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2018-08-31 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book tells of one of the most expansive and rapid phases of human migration in prehistory, a period during which Polynesians reached and settled nearly every archipelago scattered across some 28 million square kilometres of the Pacific Ocean, an area now known as East Polynesia. Through an engaging narrative and over 400 maps, diagrams, photographs, and illustrations, Crowe conveys some of the skills, innovation, resourcefulness, and courage of the people that drove this extraordinary feat of maritime expansion. In this masterful work, Andrew Crowe integrates a diversity of research and viewpoints in a format that is both accessible to the lay reader and required reading for any serious scholar of this fascinating region.
Book Synopsis Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs by : Alan Feduccia
Download or read book Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs written by Alan Feduccia and published by BrownWalker Press. This book was released on 2020-10-15 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Birds and dinosaurs have dominated human interest for decades. In this well-supported revolutionary view of the field, critical questions are explored with credible evidence and biological thought. Are birds derived directly from advanced dinosaurs, or are they closely related dinosaur cousins? Did flight originate via the natural "gravity-assisted" trees-down model, or from the improbable “gravity-resisted” ground-up model? Were the earliest birds ground-predators or trunk-climbing gliders? Were dinosaurs hot-blooded with insulating protofeathers, or highly active, cold-blooded reptiles? These are among the questions addressed in this path-breaking book. Current consensus suggests that early birds were earth-bound and flight began on the ground. Reversing that logic, since birds are hot-blooded, by inference so too were dinosaurs, and extraordinarily complex feathers, flight brain and inner ear, evolved before flight in dinosaurs. The iconic early bird Archaeopteryx, despite innumerable flight and arboreal features, is now displayed as an earth-bound predator that could not fly. In reality, we have yet to provide satisfactory explanations for much of the biological origin and early evolution of birds. Among the questions addressed is whether truly feathered dinosaurs are in reality lost or "hidden birds?" The architectural complexity of feathers leads the author to the conclusion that if an animal has evolved extraordinarily complex, aerodynamically-designed feathers, an avian flight hand, flight membranes, and a flight brain, it's a bird. Birds and dinosaurs captivate and enchant the human imagination. These intriguing animals have dominated the field of paleontology and evolution for the past half century, engendering heated debate on avian ancestry, the origin of flight and feathers, and the biology of their fossils. Are birds living dinosaurs? In this series of entertainingly contentious and captivating essays evolutionary biologist Alan Feduccia writes with verve and humor to expose major problems in the field and advocate liberation from the shackles of consensus thinking about birds and dinosaurs. He maintains that the euphoria of paleontologists claiming to have solved the major problems of bird evolution is premature, largely generated by the adoption of a rigid, cult-like methodology, heavily blended with ideology, and excluding many biological and geological principles. He adroitly exposes and elucidates major mistakes in the field and their aftermath. Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs is a lucid revelation of clarity and synthesis, a fascinating unveiling of the underlying science that has produced the good, but also often appalling fossil research and wild speculation in bird and dinosaur evolution. A must read for anyone interested in this rapidly evolving field, the short, concise and incisive essays provide the reader with access to this complex topic. REVIEWS and WORDS OF PRAISE In this strikingly unconventional and brilliant book, Professor Alan Feduccia presents the current status of the recent controversy about the origin of birds with clarity and vigor. A thought-provoking personal exploration of what the bird fossils represent. ---Sankar Chatterjee, Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor of Geosciences and Curator of Paleontology, Texas Tech University. Feduccia's book eloquently reminds us that consensus science is to be shied away from especially when it is used to plead special cases against basic scientific principles. The concept of “lost birds” is particularly intriguing as it defines what birds are and how special science obfuscates the simplicity of evolution. ---David A. Burnham, Associate Researcher, University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum. Based on a thorough understanding of the empirical evidence, Feduccia presents a convincing account of avian origins from their putative ancestors. ---Walter J. Bock, Professor of Evolutionary Biology, Columbia University and Research Associate, American Museum of Natural History. With candor, clear thinking, humor, and abundant evidence, Alan Feduccia’s Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs should be mandatory reading for the countless millions who are intrigued by dinosaurs and their relatives, the birds. Feduccia points out the many empirical and logical shortcomings in the stubborn majority view that birds evolved from dinosaurs, an idea now solidly entrenched as dogma in education and popular culture. This new book will be as interesting to those who study human behavior and scientific methods as it will to students of vertebrate evolution. ---David W. Steadman, Curator of Ornithology, Professor of Biology, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida.
Book Synopsis Avian Genomics in Ecology and Evolution by : Robert H. S. Kraus
Download or read book Avian Genomics in Ecology and Evolution written by Robert H. S. Kraus and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-06-29 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Birds catch the public imagination like no other group of animals; in addition, birders are perhaps the largest non-professional naturalist community. Genomics and associated bioinformatics have revolutionised daily life in just a few decades. At the same time, this development has facilitated the application of genomics technology to ecological and evolutionary studies, including biodiversity and conservation at all levels. This book reveals how the exciting toolbox of genomics offers new opportunities in all areas of avian biology. It presents contributions from prominent experts at the intersection of avian biology and genomics, and offers an ideal introduction to the world of genomics for students, biologists and bird enthusiasts alike. The book begins with a historical perspective on how genomic technology was adopted by bird ecology and evolution research groups. This led, as the book explains, to a revised understanding of avian evolution, with exciting consequences for biodiversity research as a whole. Lastly, these impacts are illustrated using seminal examples and the latest discoveries from avian biology laboratories around the world.
Book Synopsis Manual of Ornithology by : Noble S. Proctor
Download or read book Manual of Ornithology written by Noble S. Proctor and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1993-01-01 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Here is a volume that has no parallel. . . . A good reference book for those interested in the details of avian anatomy."--Science Books & Films "A gold mine of facts. . . . Every library and biology department, as well as every birder, should have a copy close at hand."--Roger Tory Peterson, from the foreword One of the most heavily illustrated ornithology references ever written, Manual or Ornithology is a visual guide to the structure and anatomy of birds--a basic tool for investigation for anyone curious about the fascinating world of birds. A concise atlas of anatomy, it contains more than 200 specially prepared accurate and clear drawings that include material never illustrated before. The text is as informative as the drawings; written at a level appropriate to undergraduate students and to bird lovers in general, it discusses why birds look and act the way they do. Designed to supplement a basic ornithology textbook, the Manual of Ornithology covers systematics and evolution, topography, feathers and flight, the skeleton and musculature, and the digestive, circulatory, respiratory, excretory, reproductive, sensory, and nervous systems of birds, as well as field techniques for watching and studying birds. Each chapter concludes with a list of key references for the topic covered, with a comprehensive bibliography at the end of the volume.
Book Synopsis Comparative Hearing: Birds and Reptiles by : Robert J. Dooling
Download or read book Comparative Hearing: Birds and Reptiles written by Robert J. Dooling and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Birds and reptiles have long fascinated investigators studying hearing and the auditory system. The highly evolved auditory inner ear of birds and reptiles shares many characteristics with the ear of mammals. Thus, the two groups are essential in understanding the form and function of the vertebrate and mammalian auditory systems. Comparative Hearing: Birds and Reptiles covers the broad range of our knowledge of hearing and acoustic communication in both groups of vertebrates. This volume addresses the many similarities in their auditory systems, as well as the known significant differences about hearing in the two groups.
Book Synopsis Modern Text Book of Zoology: Vertebrates by : R. L. Kotpal
Download or read book Modern Text Book of Zoology: Vertebrates written by R. L. Kotpal and published by Rastogi Publications. This book was released on 2010 with total page 888 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Book Synopsis Dinosaurs of the Air by : Gregory S. Paul
Download or read book Dinosaurs of the Air written by Gregory S. Paul and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2002-05 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book synthesises the growing body of evidence which suggests that modern-day birds have evolved from theropod dinosaurs of prehistoric times. The author argues that the ancestor-descendant relationship can also be reversed.
Book Synopsis Origins of the Higher Groups of Tetrapods by : Hans-Peter Schultze
Download or read book Origins of the Higher Groups of Tetrapods written by Hans-Peter Schultze and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2018-10-18 with total page 738 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edited volume explores the various views on the origins of tetrapods—amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals—views that agree or differ depending in part on how certain fossil animals are classified and which methodology is used for classification. Eighteen chapters by an international group of paleontologists and neontologists here present current hypotheses, emphasizing the kinds of data needed to answer controversial questions, as well as the variety of solutions that emerge from diferent analyses of the same data set. The book is arranged in five sections, each of which contains an overview essay that either describes the development of various schools of thought regarding the origin of the tetrapod group in question or critically summarizes the arguments presented in the section. The first section addresses the origins of tetrapods as a group, focusing on lobe-finned fishes and early tetrapods. Next is a section dealing with amphbians, followed by one on reptiles. The fourth section concerns avian origins, and the final section treats the origins and early diversification of mammals. With an overall goal of stimulating critical evaluation by the reader rather than providing unequivocal answers, this volume will be of particaular interest to vertebrate paleontologists, evolutionary morphologists, and ichthyological, herpatological, avian, and mammalian systematists.
Book Synopsis Handbook of Bird Biology by : Irby J. Lovette
Download or read book Handbook of Bird Biology written by Irby J. Lovette and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-06-27 with total page 736 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Selected by Forbes.com as one of the 12 best books about birds and birding in 2016 This much-anticipated third edition of the Handbook of Bird Biology is an essential and comprehensive resource for everyone interested in learning more about birds, from casual bird watchers to formal students of ornithology. Wherever you study birds your enjoyment will be enhanced by a better understanding of the incredible diversity of avian lifestyles. Arising from the renowned Cornell Lab of Ornithology and authored by a team of experts from around the world, the Handbook covers all aspects of avian diversity, behaviour, ecology, evolution, physiology, and conservation. Using examples drawn from birds found in every corner of the globe, it explores and distills the many scientific discoveries that have made birds one of our best known - and best loved - parts of the natural world. This edition has been completely revised and is presented with more than 800 full color images. It provides readers with a tool for life-long learning about birds and is suitable for bird watchers and ornithology students, as well as for ecologists, conservationists, and resource managers who work with birds. The Handbook of Bird Biology is the companion volume to the Cornell Lab’s renowned distance learning course, Ornithology: Comprehensive Bird Biology.
Book Synopsis Aboriginal Peoples and Birds in Australia by : Philip A. Clarke
Download or read book Aboriginal Peoples and Birds in Australia written by Philip A. Clarke and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2023-04-03 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Australia is home to many distinctive species of birds, and Aboriginal peoples have developed close alliances with them over the millennia of their custodianship of this country. Aboriginal Peoples and Birds in Australia: Historical and Cultural Relationships provides a review of the broad physical, historical and cultural relationships that Aboriginal people have had with the Australian avifauna. This book aims to raise awareness of the alternative bodies of ornithological knowledge that reside outside of Western science. It describes the role of birds as totemic ancestors and spirit beings, and explores Aboriginal bird nomenclature, foraging techniques and the use of avian materials to make food, medicine and artefacts. Through a historical perspective, this book examines the gaps between knowledge systems of Indigenous peoples and Western science, to encourage greater collaboration and acknowledgment in the future. Cultural sensitivity Readers are warned that there may be words, descriptions and terms used in this book that are culturally sensitive, and which might not normally be used in certain public or community contexts. While this information may not reflect current understanding, it is provided by the author in a historical context. This publication may also contain quotations, terms and annotations that reflect the historical attitude of the original author or that of the period in which the item was written, and may be considered inappropriate today. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are advised that this publication may contain the names and images of people who have passed away.
Book Synopsis Origin and Evolution of Vertebrates by : Blair Parker &
Download or read book Origin and Evolution of Vertebrates written by Blair Parker & and published by Scientific e-Resources. This book was released on 2019-06-06 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The relative way to deal with immunology can be followed to the time of Pasteur and Metchnikov in which perceptions in regards to outside acknowledgment in spineless creatures was a factor in the advancement of the primary ideas that made the establishment of what now is the expansive field of immunology. With each major exploratory and theoretical achievement, the traditional, yet fundamental, question has been solicited "e;are the resistant frameworks from phylogenetically primitive vertebrates and spineless creatures like that of warm blooded animals?"e; Somewhat shockingly for the jawed vertebrates, the general answer has been a qualified type of "e;yes"e;, though for agnathans and invertebrate phyla it has been "e;no"e; up until this point. The obvious suddenness in the presence of the insusceptible arrangement of vertebrates is connected to the presentation of the substantial age of the decent variety of its antigen particular receptors. Consequently the inquiries with respect to the beginning and development of the particular insusceptible framework rotate around this wonder. As for the birthplace of the framework (beside the origin of the revising hardware itself, the investigation of which is still in its outset) one can make inquiries about the cell and atomic settings in which the instrument was presented.
Download or read book Avian Evolution written by Gerald Mayr and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-09-08 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Knowledge of the evolutionary history of birds has much improved in recent decades. Fossils from critical time periods are being described at unprecedented rates and modern phylogenetic analyses have provided a framework for the interrelationships of the extant groups. This book gives an overview of the avian fossil record and its paleobiological significance, and it is the only up-to-date textbook that covers both Mesozoic and more modern-type Cenozoic birds in some detail. The reader is introduced to key features of basal avians and the morphological transformations that have occurred in the evolution towards modern birds. An account of the Cenozoic fossil record sheds light on the biogeographic history of the extant avian groups and discusses fossils in the context of current phylogenetic hypotheses. This review of the evolutionary history of birds not only addresses students and established researchers, but it may also be a useful source of information for anyone else with an interest in the evolution of birds and a moderate background in biology and geology.
