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Phenotypic plasticity - the ability of an individual organism to alter its features in direct response to a change in its environment - is ubiquitous. This book brings together researchers who approach plasticity from diverse perspectives to explore new ideas and recent findings about the causes and consequences of plasticity.
Table des matières
Foreword: A Perspective on Plasticity
Preface and Acknowledgements
Section I Plasticity & Evolution: Concepts & Questions
Phenotypic Plasticity as an Intrinsic Property of Organisms
"There is Hardly Any Question in Biology of More Importance"--Charles Darwin and the Nature of Variation
Key Questions about Phenotypic Plasticity
Section II Causes of Plasticity: From Genes to Ecology
Genetic Variation in Phenotypic Plasticity
Physiological Mechanisms and the Evolution of Plasticity
Ecology and the Evolution of Plasticity
The Loss of Phenotypic Plasticity via Natural Selection: Genetic Assimilation
Section III Consequences of Plasticity: Adaptation, Origination, Diversification
Buying Time: Plasticity and Population Persistence
Innovation and Diversification via Plasticity-led Evolution
Plasticity and Evolutionary Transitions in Individuality
Phenotypic Plasticity in the Fossil Record
Section IV Plasticity & Evolution: Controversies & Consensus
The Special Case of Behavioral Plasticity?
Plasticity Across Generations
How Does Phenotypic Plasticity Fit into Evolutionary Theory?
Plasticity and Evolutionary Theory: Where We Are and Where We Should be Going
List of Contributors
Index
A propos de l'auteur
David W. Pfennig is a professor of biology at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and a Sigma Xi Distinguished Lecturer. He is broadly interested in evolutionary biology, ecology, behavior, and developmental biology and is author (with Karin Pfennig) of
Evolution's Wedge: Competition and the Origins of Diversity. His work has been featured on The National Geographic Channel, on the BBC/ PBS's Nature series, and in
The New York Times, Newsweek, National Geographic, Scientific American, New Scientist, and
Discover, among other publications.
Résumé
Phenotypic plasticity – the ability of an individual organism to alter its features in direct response to a change in its environment – is ubiquitous. This book brings together researchers who approach plasticity from diverse perspectives to explore new ideas and recent findings about the causes and consequences of plasticity.
