Cowen’s History of Life

Title Page
Copyright Page
Contents
Preface
About the Companion Website
Chapter 1 The Origin of Life on Earth
How Geology Works
How Paleontology Works
The Origin of Life
Planets in Our Solar System
The Early Earth
Life Exists in Cells
Making Organic Molecules
Toward the First Living Cell
Where Did Life Evolve?
Energy Sources for the First Life
Heterotrophy
Photosynthesis
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 2 The Earliest Life on Earth
Introduction
How to Find the Age of a Fossil
Life Alters a Planet
Isotope Evidence for Biology
Earth’s Oldest Rocks
Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA) and the Early Evolution of Cells
Stromatolites
Ancient Stromatolites
Identifying Fossil Cells in Ancient Rocks
Banded Iron Formations (BIF)
Banded Iron Formations, Stromatolites and Oxygen
The Great Oxidation Event
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 3 The Origin of Eukaryotes
Single-Celled Life
Symbiosis and Endosymbiosis
The Prokaryotic Ancestors of Eukaryotic Cells
Eukaryotes in the Fossil Record
The Evolution of Sex
The Classification of Eukaryotes
Cladistics
References
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 4 The Evolution of Metazoans
Proterozoic Microbes
Snowball or Slushball Earth
The Ediacaran Period
Making a Metazoan
The Doushantuo Formation
Large Ediacaran Organisms
Molecular Clocks
References
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 5 The Cambrian Explosion
The Cambrian Explosion
The Variety of Metazoans
The Evolution of Skeletons: Small Shelly Fossils
Larger Cambrian Animals
Soft-Bodied Cambrian Animals
What Caused the Cambrian Explosion?
Evolution and Development
Oxygen Levels
Seawater Chemistry
Mineralization
Predation
Exploiting the Sea Floor
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 6 Changing Life in a Changing World
Today’s World
Energy and Ecology
Biogeography and Paleobiogeography
Provinces
Poles and Tropics
Islands, Continents, and Climates
Geographic Isolation and Evolution
Diversity Patterns in the Fossil Record
Global Tectonics and Global Diversity
Changing Faunas Through Time
Three Great Faunas
Explaining the Three Great Faunas
Mass Extinctions
Explaining Mass Extinction
The Ordovician Mass Extinction
The Late Devonian (F–F) Mass Extinction
The Permian–Triassic (P–Tr) Extinction
Plume Volcanism
The Hyperthermal Killing Model
Ocean Chemistry Crisis
The End-Triassic Extinction
Evolutionary Radiations
Mass Extinctions
Invading a New Habitat
New Biological Inventions
References
Further Reading
Diversity Through Time
Mass Extinctions
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 7 The Early Vertebrates
Vertebrates
Vertebrate Origin
The Cyclostomes – Vertebrates Without Vertebrae
Ostracoderms
Heterostracans
Anaspids
Thelodonts
Galeaspids
Osteostracans
The Evolution of Jaws
Placoderms
Acanthodians
Cartilaginous Fishes (Sharks and Rays)
Bony Fishes
Air Breathing
The Problem
Respiration in Early Fishes
Oxygen Intake
Air Gulping and Fishy Lungs
Actinopterygii (Rayfin Fishes)
Sarcopterygii (Lobefin Fishes)
Coelacanths
Lungfishes
Tetrapodomorpha
References
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 8 Leaving the Water
Problems of Life in Air
How Plants Engineered the Landscape
Genomic Data and the Origin of Land Plants
How Plants Adapted to Life on Land
The Earliest Land Plants
The Bryophytes: Mosses and Relatives
The Earliest Tracheophytes
The Rhynie Chert as a Window into Early Life on Land
Later Devonian Tracheophytes – Diversification of Lycophytes and Euphyllophytes
Early Plant Innovation
Comparing Plant and Animal Evolution
The First Land Animals
References
Further Reading
Plants
Animals
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 9 Early Tetrapods and Amniote Origins
Vertebrates Conquer the Land
Tetrapodomorphs
From Tetrapodomorph to Tetrapod
Limbs and Feet: Why Become Tetrapod?
Fresh Food Supplies?
Basking?
Reproduction?
The First Tetrapods: Devonian
Tetrapods Diversify: Carboniferous
Ancestors of Living Amphibians: Batrachosaurs
Ancestors of Living Amniotes: Reptiliomorphs
Amniotes and the Amniotic Egg
Why Were the First Amniotes Small?
Carboniferous Land Ecology
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 10 Early Amniotes and Thermoregulation
The Amniote Radiation
Pelycosaurs
Pelycosaur Biology and Ecology
Locomotion
Carnivorous Pelycosaurs
Vegetarian Pelycosaurs
How Does Herbivory Evolve in Tetrapods?
Thermoregulation in Living Reptiles
Thermoregulation in Pelycosaurs
Permian Changes
The Invasion of Gondwana
Thermoregulation in Therapsids
Therapsid Evolution
Dinocephalians
Advanced Therapsids
Dicynodonts
Parareptiles
Synapsids and Their Diapsid Replacements
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 11 The Mesozoic Marine Revolution
Mesozoic Ocean Ecosystems
Recovering Seas
Crisis on the Seabed
Reefs
Ammonites and Belemnites
Fishes
Arms Races and New Predatory Modes
Ichthyosaurs
Sauropterygians
Mosasaurs
Turtles
Crocodiles
Air Breathers at Sea
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 12 The Triassic Takeover
Diapsids
Basal Diapsids
Lepidosauromorphs
Archosauromorphs
The Triassic Diapsid Takeover: The Pattern
Rhynchosaurs
Triassic Archosaurs: Crurotarsi
Dinosaur Ancestors: Avemetatarsalia
Respiration, Metabolism, and Locomotion
The Carnian Pluvial Episode (CPE) and the Rise of the Dinosaurs
Reference
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 13 Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs
Theropods
Sauropodomorphs
Ornithischians
Dinosaur Paleobiology
Feeding
Locomotion
How Could Dinosaurs Be So Huge?
Metabolic Rate and Temperature in Dinosaurs
Dinosaur Eggs and Nests
Dinosaur Feathers
The Origin of Feathers
Dinosaur Behavior
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 14 Birds and the Evolution of Flight
Flying Animals
Pterosaurs
Pterosaur Feeding and Fossils
Pterosaur Flight
Getting Off the Ground
Birds
Archaeopteryx
The Origin of Flight in Birds
Cretaceous Birds
Cenozoic Birds
The Largest Flying Birds
References
Further Reading
Pterosaurs
Birds
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 15 The Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution
Life on Land in the Ascendant
Dating the Origin of Angiosperms
The Oldest Fossil Angiosperms
Angiosperms and Changing Mesozoic Ecology
Seeds and Pollination
Reasons for Angiosperm Success
Pollination and Insect Pollinators
Seed Dispersal
Fast-Growing Seedlings
Explosion in Insects
Ants and Termites
Later Stages in the Revolution
Angiosperm Chemistry
Reference
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 16 The End of the Dinosaurs
The Extinction at the End of the Cretaceous
An Asteroid Impact?
Iridium and Glass Spherules
Finding the Crater
The Impact and Its Consequences
A Giant Volcanic Eruption?
Paleobiological Evidence from the K–Pg Boundary
Land Plants
Dinosaurs
Lizards, Birds, and Mammals
Freshwater Communities
Marine Life
Where Are We?
Further Reading
Question for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 17 Changing Oceans and Climates
Climate
Scientific Ocean Drilling and Proxies
Changes in Marine Life over Time
The Cretaceous Hothouse
Hyperthermals
Descent into the Icehouse
The Pliocene
The Ice Ages
Climate Change
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 18 The Origin of Mammals
The Derived Features of Mammals
Cynodonts and Defining the First Mammals
Teeth and Tooth Replacement
Skulls and Jaws
Hearing
Locomotion
Thermoregulation and Metabolic Level
Evolution of Hair
Mammalian Reproduction
Lactation
Early Mammaliaformes
Early Crown-Group Mammals
Therian Mammals
The Inferiority of Mammals
Reference
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 19 Cenozoic Mammals
Evolution Among Cenozoic Mammals
Morphological Evidence
Molecular Evidence
The Paleocene
The Eocene
The End of the Eocene
The Later Cenozoic
Ecological Replacement: The Guild Concept
Cenozoic Mammals in Dinosaur Guilds
The Savanna Story
Evolutionary Change over Time
Bats
Whales
Reference
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 20 Geography and Evolution
Mammals and Geography
Australia
New Zealand
South America
Africa
Madagascar
Islands and Biogeography
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 21 Primates
Primate Characters
The Earliest Primates
The Living Prosimians
The Origin of Anthropoids
The Eocene and Oligocene Radiation of Anthropoids
The New World Monkeys (Platyrrhines)
The Old World Monkeys
Emergence of the Hominoids
Early and Middle Miocene Hominoids
Late Miocene to Pleistocene Hominoids
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 22 Evolving Toward Humans
The Earliest Hominins
Early Australopithecines
Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus in South Africa
Robust Australopithecines
Transitional Species and Early Tool Use
Homo erectus and the Modern Body Plan
Into Asia
After Homo erectus
The Origin of Homo sapiens
The Neanderthals
Ancient DNA
Evolution among Humans Today
References
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Chapter 23 Life in the Ice Age
Ice Ages and Climatic Change
The Present Ice Age
Life and Climate in the Ice Ages
Faunal Changes
Causes of the End‐Pleistocene Extinction: Human Hunting
Causes of the End‐Pleistocene Extinction: Climatic and Environmental Change
North America: Human Arrival and Human Hunting
North America: Patterns of Megafaunal Extinction
South America
Old World Continents
Australia
Island Extinctions
The World Today
Further Reading
Questions for Thought, Study, and Discussion
Glossary
Index