Constructional Morphology and Evolution

✍ Scribed by N. Schmidt-Kittler, K. Vogel (auth.), Prof. Dr. Norbert Schmidt-Kittler, Prof. Dr. Klaus Vogel (eds.)

• Publisher: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
• Year: 1991
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 400
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Constructional morphology explains features of organisms from a constructional and functional point of view. By means of physical analysis it explains the operational aspects of organic structures - how they can perform the activities organisms are expected to fulfil in order to survive in their environment. Constructional morphology also explains options and constraints during the evolution determined by internal constructional needs, ontogenetic demands, inherited organizational preconditions and environmental clues.

✦ Table of Contents

Front Matter....Pages I-XI
Introduction: A New Look at Morphology....Pages 1-6
Front Matter....Pages 7-7
Explanations in Konstruktionsmorphologie and Evolutionary Morphology....Pages 9-29
Functional Aspects of Morphology....Pages 31-40
An Outline of Morpho-Constructional Analysis....Pages 41-53
Concepts of Constructional Morphology....Pages 55-68
Front Matter....Pages 69-69
Dynamic Similarity in the Analysis of Animal Movement....Pages 71-79
Cytomechanics and Biochemistry....Pages 81-90
Constructional Principles and the Quasi-Experimental Approach to Organisms....Pages 91-112
Biomechanics in the Enamel of Mammalian Teeth....Pages 113-125
The Functional Morphology of Gastropod Apertures....Pages 127-140
Behavior plus “Pathology” — the Origin of Adaptations?....Pages 141-150
The Function of Labyrinthodont Teeth: Big Teeth in Small Jaws....Pages 151-171
Complexity and a Coupled System: Flight, Echolocation and Evolution in Bats....Pages 173-191
Biomechanical Aspects of the Wing Joints in Flies, Especially in Calliphora erythrocephala ....Pages 193-207
Front Matter....Pages 209-209
Ontogenetic Changes Reflected in the Morphology of the Molluscan Shell....Pages 211-230
A Functional Approach to the Development of the Head of Teleosts: Implications on Constructional Morphology and Constraints....Pages 231-249
Self-Organizing Mechanisms in Morphogenesis and Evolution....Pages 251-271
Genetic and Molecular Analysis of Pattern Formation Processes in Drosophila ....Pages 273-282
Design Elements Employed in the Construction of Animal Skeletons....Pages 283-294
A Theoretical Morphological Approach to Tooth Replacement in Lower Vertebrates....Pages 295-310
Front Matter....Pages 311-311
Evolution of Biological Constructions: Concessions, Limitations, and Pathways....Pages 313-329
Constructional and Ecological Prerequisites for the Evolution of Homeothermy....Pages 331-357
The Mechanical Constraints in Mollusc Constructions — the Function of the Shell, the Musculature, and the Connective Tissue....Pages 359-374
Morphogenetic Versus Environmental Cues for Adaptive Radiations....Pages 375-388
The Sequence of Body Plans and Locomotory Systems During the Precambrian-Cambrian Transition....Pages 389-397
Back Matter....Pages 399-409

✦ Subjects

Zoology;Plant Sciences;Biophysics and Biological Physics;Geology