Synopses & Reviews
This book is the first attempt to collate all the information known to date on the small vertebrates, e.g. mammals, crocodiles, turtles, lizards, frogs, salamanders, etc., and features contributions by experts with international reputations in their fields. There are chapters on the taxonomy and phylogeny of the key vertebrate groups followed by a section dealing with the most significant fossiliferous assemblages worldwide. The final section looks at how faunal turnover at this time is measured and examines the possibility of mass extinctions.
Synopsis
The first book on the small vertebrates of the early Mesozoic; for researchers working in palaeontology, zoology, and evolution.
Synopsis
The early Mesozoic was a critical period in the evolution of life on land when most of today's major groups of terrestrial vertebrates arose and dinosaurs and pterosaurs rose to prominence. This book is the first to collate all the information on the small vertebrates and features contributions by internationally renowned experts.
Table of Contents
Introduction N. C. Fraser and H.-D. Sues; Section I. Phylogeny: 1. Late Triassic and Jurassic amphibians - fossil record and phylogeny A. R. Milner; 2. The Lepidosauromorpha: an overview with special emphasis on the Squamata O. Rieppel; 3. Late Triassic-Early Jurassic sphenodontians from China and the phylogeny of the Sphenodontia X. Wu; 4. Marine members of the Sphenodontia R. L. Carroll, and R. Wild; 5. Patterns of evolution in Mesozoic Crocodyliformes J. M. Clark; 6. Sister-group relationships of mammals and transformations of diagnostic mammalian characters Z. Luo; Section II. Faunal Assemblages: 7. A review of the British Middle Triassic tetrapod assemblages M. J. Benton, G. Warrington, A. J. Newell, and P. S. Spencer; 8. Small tetrapods from the Upper Triassic of the Richmond basin (Newark supergroup), Virginia H.-D. Sues, P. E. Olsen, and P. A. Kroehler; 9. Microvertebrates from the Placerias Quarry (Chinle Formation: lower unit, Petrified Forest Member, Carnian, northern Arizona): a window on Late Triassic vertebrate diversity in the American Southwest F. T. Kaye and K. Padian; 10. Late Triassic microvertebrates from central Europe D. Sigogneau-Russell and G. Hahn; 11. Assemblages of small tetrapods from British Late Triassic fissure deposits N. C. Fraser; 12. Ornithiscian dinosaurs from the Upper Triassic of the United States A. P. Hunt, and S. G. Lucas; 13. Early Jurassic small tetrapods from the McCoy Brook formation of Nova Scotia N. H. Shubin, P. E. Olsen, and H.-D. Sues; 14. The small tetrapods of the Lower Lufeng Formation, Yunnan, China Z. Luo, and X. Wu; 15. Assemblages of small tetrapods from the Early Jurassic of Britain S. E. Evans, and K. A. Kermack; 16. A review of the Early Jurassic tetrapods from the Glen Canyon Group of the American Southwest H.-D. Sues, J. M. Clark, and F. A. Jenkins, Jr; 17. An Early or Middle Jurassic tetrapod assemblage from the La Boca Formation, northeastern Mexico J. M. Clark, M. Montellano, J. A. Hopson, R. Hernandez, and D. E. Fastovsky; 18. Middle Jurassic microvertebrate assemblages from the British Isles S. E. Evans, and A. R. Milner; 19. A new Bathonian microvertebrate locality in the English Midlands S. J. Metcalf, and R. J. Walker; Section III. Faunal Change: 20. The chronology and biogeography of mammalian origins S. G. Lucas, and A. P. Hunt; 21. Biotic and climatic changes in the Carnian (Triassic) of Europe and adjacent areas M. J. Simms, A. H. Ruffell, and A. L. A. Johnson; 22. Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic extinctions among continental tetrapods: testing the pattern M. J. Benton; 23. Comments on Benton's Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic extinctions among continental tetrapods N. C. Fraser, and H.-D. Sues; 24. What was the tempo and mode of evolutionary change in the Late Triassic to Middle Jurassic? K. Padian; 25. Field guide to late Triassic tetrapod sites in Virginia and North Carolina P. E. Olsen, and A. K. Johansson; Taxonomic index.