http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
evolutionary patterns in the origin of Cetacea
1 online resource (xii, 477 pages) : illustrations.
Research in whale origins is now in an explosive phase, with a cascade of discoveries adding to our understanding of the evolutionary pattern and a suite of new techniques being applied to address new questions. The objective of this volume is to provide a snapshot of this explosion. The volume paints the scene with a broad brush. Taken together the chapters clearly indicate that cetacean origins is a field that is dynamic, multidisciplinary, and that the end of the explosive phase is not in sight.
Synopsis of the earliest cetaceans : Pakicetidae, Ambulocetidae, Remingtonocetidae, and Protocetidae / Ellen M. Williams -- Middle to Late Eocene basilosaurines and dorudontines / Mark D. Uhen -- Molecular evidence for the phylogenetic affinities of Cetacea / John Gatesy -- Cetaceans are highly derived artiodactyls / Michel C. Milinkovitch, Martine Bérubé, and Per J. Palsbøll -- Phylogenetic and morphometric reassessment of the dental evidence for a mesonychian and cetacean clade / Maureen A. O'Leary -- Relationships of Cetacea to terrestrial ungulates and the evolution of cranial vasculature in Cete / Jonathan H. Geisler and Zhexi Luo -- Middle Eocene cetaceans from the Harudi and Subathu Formations of India / Sunil Bajpai and J.G.M. Thewissen -- Postcranial osteology of the North American Middle Eocene protocetid Georgiacetus / Richard C. Hulbert, Jr. -- Homology and transformation of cetacean ectotympanic structures / Zhexi Luo -- Biomechanical perspective on the origin of cetacean flukes / Frank E. Fish -- Implications of vertebral morphology for locomotor evolution in early Cetacea / Emily A. Buchholtz -- Structural adaptations of early archaeocete long bones / Sandra I. Madar -- Evolution of thermoregulatory function in cetacean reproductive systems / D. Ann Pabst, Sentiel A. Rommel, and William A. McLellan -- Isotopic approaches to understanding the terrestrial-to-marine transition of the earliest cetaceans / Lois J. Roe ... [et al.] -- Paleobiological perspectives on Mesonychia, Archaeoceti, and the origin of whales / Philip D. Gingerich -- Cetacean origins : evolutionary turmoil during the invasion of the oceans / J.G.M. Thewissen.
Includes bibliographical references and index.