Evolutionary Perspectives on Pregnancy (eBook)

John Avise (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF | EPUB

2013
Columbia University Press (Verlag)
978-0-231-53145-0 (ISBN)

Infos

John C. Avise is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Irvine, and an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society. He is also the author of Hermaphroditism: A Primer on the Biology, Ecology, and Evolution of Dual Sexuality.

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Covering both the internal and external incubation of offspring, this book provides a biology-rich survey of the natural history, ecology, genetics, and evolution of pregnancy-like phenomena. From mammals and other live-bearing organisms to viviparous reptiles, male-pregnant fishes, larval-brooding worms, crabs, sea cucumbers, and corals, the world's various species display pregnancy and other forms of parental devotion in surprisingly multifaceted ways. An adult female (or male) can incubate its offspring in a womb, stomach, mouth, vocal sac, gill chamber, epithelial pouch, backpack, leg pocket, nest, or an encasing of embryos, and by studying these diverse examples from a comparative vantage point, the ecological and evolutionary-genetic outcomes of different reproductive models become fascinatingly clear. John C. Avise discusses each mode of pregnancy and the decipherable genetic signatures it has left on the reproductive structures, physiologies, and innate sexual behaviors of extant species. By considering the many biological aspects of gestation from different evolutionary angles, Avise offers captivating new insights into the significance of "e;heavy"e; parental investment in progeny.

Inhalt

PrefacePart I: Distribution and Diversity of Pregnancy1. One Generation Inside AnotherThe Sexual LifecycleOntogenetic and Evolutionary Gradations of PregnancyViviparous Pregnancy in the Reproductive TimelineHeterochronySome Unorthodox Routes to Internal PregnancySexual Inequalities and Female Authority Over ReproductionOther Sexual Asymmetries Related to Biological ParenthoodEvolutionary ReconstructionsSummary2. Vertebrate Live-Bearers: The Borne and the BornViviparityEvolutionary OriginsDevelopmental SequencesTrophic Relationships Between Mother and FetusThe Cast of Viviparous VertebratesSummary3. Vertebrate Alternatives to Standard PregnancyOviparity: The Borne and the HatchedThe Cast of Oviparous VertebratesIntermediate Conditions and Evolutionary TransitionsSummary4. Nonvertebrate BroodersThe Cast of PlayersEvolutionary TransitionsConflicts Promoted by BroodingGenetic Parentage AssessmentsSummary5. Human Pregnancy in Mythology and in Real LifeConception and ContraceptionExtracorporeal FertilizationSuperfetationTwinning or Multibirth PregnancyEctopic PregnancyFrom Preterm Labor to Prolonged PregnancySpontaneous AbortionInduced Abortion and InfanticideCesarean SectionPrecocious PubertyStandard Vaginal DeliveryThe PlacentaMenopauseMale PregnancySummaryPart II: Evolutionary Ramifications of Pregnancy6. Natural Selection During Mammalian PregnancyDelayed ImplantationPolyembryonyDizygotic TwinningCooperation and Conflict Within the Nuclear FamilyEvolutionary Conflict in Mother-Offspring RelationsOther Categories of ConflictSummary7. Sexual Selection and Piscine PregnancyAnisogamy, Sexual Selection, and Animal Mating BehaviorsCategories of Sexual SelectionFemale Pregnancy and Traditional Female ChoiceInternal Male PregnancyExternal PregnancySummary8. Pregnancy in a Comparative LightSexual Selection and Multiple Mating by the Pregnant GenderNatural Selection Stemming from Pregnancy and BroodingSummaryEpilogueAppendix: Molecular-Genetic Parentage AnalysesGlossaryReferences CitedIndex

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 15.1.2013
• Zusatzinfo: <B>99 illus.</B>
• Verlagsort: New York
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Evolution
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Zoologie
• Themenwelt: Technik
• ISBN-10: 0-231-53145-1 / 0231531451
• ISBN-13: 978-0-231-53145-0 / 9780231531450