Ecology and Evolution of Flowers

Book Description

The reproductive organs and mating biology of angiosperms exhibit greater variety than those of any other group of organisms. Flowers and inflorescences are also the most diverse structures produced by angiosperms, and floral traits provide some of the most compelling examples of evolution by
natural selection. Given that flowering plants include roughly 250,000 species, their reproductive diversity will not be explained easily by continued accumulation of case studies of individual species. Instead a more strategic approach is now required, which seeks to identify general principles
concerning the role of ecological function in the evolution of reproductive diversity.

The Ecology and Evolution of Flowers uses this approach to expose new insights into the functional basis of floral diversity, and presents the very latest theoretical and empirical research on floral evolution. Floral biology is a dynamic and growing area and this book, written by the leading
internationally recognized researchers in this field, reviews current progress in understanding the evolution and function of flowers. Chapters contain both new research findings and synthesis. Major sections in turn examine functional aspects of floral traits and sexual systems, the ecological
influences on reproductive adaptation, and the role of floral biology in angiosperm diversification. Overall, this integrated treatment illustrates the role of floral function and evolution in the generation of angiosperm biodiversity.

This advanced textbook is suitable for graduate level students taking courses in plant ecology, evolution, systematics, biodiversity and conservation. It will also be of interest and use to a broader audience of plant scientists seeking an authoritative overview of recent advances in floral
biology.

Evolutionary Ecology of Plant Reproductive Strategies

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Good, detailed overview of plant reproductive systems

Evolutionary Ecology of Plant Reproductive Strategies
Tom de Jong , and Peter Klinkhamer
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521528941

Book Description

Evolutionary biologists have produced a solid body of evidence to explain patterns of diversification, both within and among species. Recent textbooks are weighted towards studies of animals, which is surprising given that plants are ideally suited for answering evolutionary questions. This book places the wealth of data that have been collected on plants into the unifying framework of game theory. It is the authors' hope that many students will take on this challenge and help the study of the evolutionary ecology of plants to develop as a mature, predictive science.

Customer Reviews:

Good, detailed overview of plant reproductive systems.......2007-03-10

This is a decent, well-documented overview of plant reproductive systems, with much supporting theory as to how and why they evolved. The decidedly theoretical approach works well, but the mathematical underpinnings may be difficult for some with a more empirical background. Nevertheless, this book will probably remain the best general introduction to this topic for quite some time.

An Enthusiasm for Orchids: Sex and Deception in Plant Evolution

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An Enthusiasm for Orchids: Sex and Deception in Plant Evolution
John Alcock
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 019518274X

Book Description

The male thynnine wasp's extreme sexual enthusiasm is crucial to reproduction of hammer orchids in the wild. Hammer orchids have co-evolved to produce odors identical to those manufactured by female thynnine wasps. The male wasp's superb sensitivity to the scent of his female mate is the basis for the hammer orchid's deceit--in effect, orchids exploit the male insect's highly adaptive sense of smell for their own propagation. While pollinating orchids is a waste of time, and thus a maladaptive activity for a wasp, his mistake comes about because he must react quickly whenever he senses a possible mate nearby. Alcock suggests that, "for insects, he who hesitates is lost, although perhaps it would be better to say that he who hesitates often loses a chance to pass on his genes." This book abounds with clever explanations for how these exceptionally complex flowers came to be shaped as they are. The reader can explore many aspects of orchid biology and history ranging from how some species avoid inbreeding, to the origins of orchids from an ancestor that belonged to the asparagus family. Examining each component of an orchid's flower, Alcock explains how the various parts work together to produce the plant's minute offspring. Each element of an orchid, as quirky as it may seem, is biologically significant, bearing the imprint of natural selection. Readers can share in the delight that Darwin and all other orchid enthusiasts have felt in making sense of even the smallest of details of these most wonderful plants.

Cognitive Ecology of Pollination: Animal Behaviour and Floral Evolution

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Cognitive Ecology of Pollination: Animal Behaviour and Floral Evolution

Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Plant-Pollinator Interactions: From Specialization to Generalization

ASIN: 0521781957

Book Description

Important breakthroughs have recently been made in our understanding of the cognitive and sensory abilities of pollinators, such as how pollinators perceive, memorize, and react to floral signals and rewards; how they work flowers, move among inflorescences, and transport pollen. These new findings have obvious implications for the evolution of floral display and diversity, but most existing publications are scattered across a wide range of journals in very different research traditions. This book brings together outstanding scholars from many different fields of pollination biology, integrating the work of neuroethologists and evolutionary ecologists to present a multidisciplinary approach.

Dangerous Liaisons?: When Cultivated Plants Mate with Their Wild Relatives (Syntheses in Ecology and Evolution)

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Dangerous Liaisons?: When Cultivated Plants Mate with Their Wild Relatives (Syntheses in Ecology and Evolution)
Norman C. Ellstrand
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 080187405X

Book Description

With the advent of genetic engineering, "designer" crops might interbreed with natural populations. Could such romances lead to the evolution of "superweeds", as some have suggested? But haven't crops had sex with wild plants in the past? Has such gene swapping occurred without consequences? And if consequences have indeed occurred, what lessons can be gleaned for engineered crops?

In Dangerous Liaisons? Norman Ellstrand examines these and other questions. He begins with basic information about the natural hybridization process. He then describes what we now know about hybridization between the world's most important crops -- such as wheat, rice, maize, and soybeans -- and their wild relatives. Such hybridization, Ellstrand explains, is not rare, and has occasionally had a substantial impact. In some cases, the result was problematic weeds. In others, crop genes have diluted natural diversity to the point that wild populations of certain rare species were absorbed into the gene pool of the more common crop, essentially bringing the wild species to the brink of extinction.

Ellstrand concludes with a look to the future. Will engineered crops pose a greater threat than traditional crops? If so, can gene flow and hybridization be managed to control the escape of engineered genes? This book will appeal to academics, policy makers, students, and all with an interest in environmental issues.

Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination

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Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination
Outstanding contribution in seed dormancy and germination .

Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination
Carol C. Baskin , and Jerry M. Baskin
Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0120802635

Book Description

This book about seeds focuses upon their two most important functions - dormancy and germination. The topics to be covered include the types of dormancy, theories of the relationship between dormancy and germination, the timing of germination, the various factors that control germination, and the general aspects of germination in different sorts of habitats.

* Provides information on over 3500 species of trees, shrubs, vines, and herbaceous plants
* * Gives guidelines for doing ecologically meaningful germination studies

Customer Reviews:

Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination.......2007-05-13

Authoritative and my new guide to unlocking the secrets of dormancy. Written at a level I can understand. It is my latest guide in my quest to grow plants and trees. I thank the authors for the knowledge this book has given me.

Outstanding contribution in seed dormancy and germination ........1999-09-15

An amazing book from a peer couple of seed science and technology. Weed seed ecology is my field and it always facinated me, that how a plant showed his strategy against humen interference in its life cycle. This book is clearly answered these question by different ways. I really congratulate the honorable authors for there real contribution in seed science.

Concepts of Symbiogenesis: A Historical and Critical Study of the Research of Russian Botanists (Bio-Origins Series)

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Concepts of Symbiogenesis: A Historical and Critical Study of the Research of Russian Botanists (Bio-Origins Series)
Liya Nikolaevna Khakhina
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0300048165

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inspirative and quite thorough look on sexual selection

Sperm Competition and Sexual Selection

Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0121005437

Book Description

Sperm Competition and Sexual Selection presents the intricate ways in which sperm compete to fertilize eggs and how this has prompted reinterpretations of breeding behavior. This book provides a theoretical framework for the study of sperm competition, which is a central part of sexual selection. It also discusses the roles of females and the relationships between paternal care in sperm competition. The chapters focusing on taxonomic development are diverse and cover all the major animal groups, both vertebrate and invertebrate, and plants. The final chapter provides an overview discussing the relationship between sperm competition and sexual selection in terms of both function and mechanism and how these translate into species fitness. This book will be of prime interest to behaviorists, ecologists and evolutionary biologists, suggesting new avenues of research and new ways of approaching old problems.

Key Features
* The only up-to-date summary of a central and popular subject
* Well known editors and authors
* Provides a theoretical framework for the study of sperm competition
* Covers all major animal groups
* Includes a chapter on plants

Customer Reviews:

inspirative and quite thorough look on sexual selection.......1999-06-20

Must-read book for any serious student or researcher who is interested in the latest approaches in the subject of sexual selection.

Average customer rating:

Frugivory, a refreshing review

Seed Dispersal and Frugivory

Manufacturer: CABI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 085199525X

Book Description

Until recently, the production of fruits by plant, their consumption by animals (frugivory) and the relevance of these to seed dispersal have attracted less attention than pollination biology. However, since the 1970s they have started to gain more prominence and now give rise to more research funding, seminal papers and international symposiums. This book contains chapters adapted from the Third International Symposium-Workshop on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal held in August 2000 in Rio Quente, Brazil.

Customer Reviews:

Frugivory, a refreshing review.......2003-01-06

This is an excellent book. A thorough summary of an interesting field in ecological research, plentiful of new approaches and creative research. The chapters are well assembled despite their obvious internal heterogeneity- they are the contributed papers to an international symposium. They summarize the state of the art of the seed dispersal and frugivory field and set the path for future developments. It's an important reference for those interested not only on this specific field, but also on general ecology and conservation biology. It's an ideal text for courses due to the braod scope of the subjects and the many examples it has. Highly recommended.

Dispersal in Plants: A Population Perspective

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Dispersal in Plants: A Population Perspective
Roger Cousens , Calvin Dytham , and Richard Law
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Evolution | Science | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This advanced textbook is the first to explore the consequences of plant dispersal for population and community dynamics, spatial patterns, and evolution. It successfully integrates a rapidly expanding body of theoretical and empirical research. DT The first comprehensive treatment of plant dispersal set within a population framework DT Examines both the processes and consequence of dispersal DT Spans the entire range of research, from natural history and collection of empirical data to modeling and evolutionary theory DT Provides a clear and simple explanation of mathematical concepts bDispersal in Plants/b is aimed principally at graduates interested in plant ecology, although given the strong current interests in invasive species and global change it will also be of interest and use to a broad audience of plant scientists and ecologists seeking an authoritative overview of this rapidly expanding field.

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