Evolution of the Rodents Advances in Phylogeny, Functional Morphology and Development

About this book

The widespread use of mouse models in developmental, behavioural and genetic studies has sparked wider interest in rodent biology as a whole. This book brings together the latest research on rodents to better understand the evolution of both living and extinct members of this fascinating group. Topics analysed include the role of molecular techniques in the determination of robust phylogenetic frameworks; how geometric morphometric methods help quantify and analyse variation in shape; and the role of developmental biology in elucidating the origins of skeletal elements and the teeth. The editors unite these disciplines to present the current state of knowledge in rodent biology, whilst setting the landscape for future research. This book highlights interdisciplinary links across palaeontology, developmental biology, functional morphology, phylogenetics and biomechanics, making it a valuable resource for evolutionary biologists in all fields.

Contents

List of contributors
Foreword; Jean-Louis Hartenberger and W. Patrick Luckett

1. Rodentia: a model order?; Lionel Hautier and Philip G. Cox
2. A synopsis of rodent molecular phylogenetics, systematics and biogeography; Pierre-Henri Fabre, Lionel Hautier and Emmanuel J. P. Douzery
3. Emerging perspectives on some Paleocene sciurognaths rodents in Laurasia: the fossil record and its interpretation; Mary R. Dawson
4. Phylogeny and evolutionary history of hystricognathous rodents from the Old World during the Tertiary: new insights into the emergence of modern 'phiomorph' families; Franck Barbière and Laurent Marivaux
5. The history of South American octodontoid rodents and its contribution to evolutionary generalisations; Diego H. Verzi, Cecilia C. Morgan and A. Itatí Olivares
6. History, taxonomy and palaeobiology of the giant fossil rodents (Hystricognathi, Dinomyidae); Andrés Rinderknecht and R. Ernesto Blanco
7. Advances in integrative taxonomy and the evolution of African murid rodents: how morphological trees hide the molecular forest; Christiane Denys and Alisa Winkler
8. Themes and variation in sciurid evolution; V. Louise Roth and John M. Mercer
9. Marmot evolution and global change in the last 10 million years; P. David Polly, Andrea Cardini, Edward B. Davis and Scott Steppan
10. Grades and clades among rodents: the promise of geometric morphometrics; Lionel Hautier, Philip G. Cox and Renaud Lebrun
11. Biogeographic variations in wood mice: testing for the role of morphological variation as a line of least resistance to evolution; Sabrina Renaud, Jean-Pierre Quére and Johan R. Michaux
12. The oral apparatus of rodents: variations on the theme of a gnawing machine; Robert E. Druzinsky
13. The muscles of mastication in rodents and the function of the medial pterygoid; Philip G. Cox and Nathan Jeffery
14. Functional morphology of rodent middle ears; Matthew J. Mason
15. Variations and anomalies in rodent teeth and their importance for testing developmental models; Cyril Charles and Laurent Viriot
16. The great variety of dental structures and dynamics in rodents: new insights into their ecological diversity; Helder Gomes Rodrigues
17. Convergent evolution of molar morphology in Muroidea (Rodentia, Mammalia): connections between chewing movements and crown morphology; Vincent Lazzari, Franck Guy, Pierre-Emmanuel Salais, Adélaïde Euriat, Cyril Charles, Laurent Viriot, Paul Tafforeau and Jacques Michaux
18. Developmental mechanisms in the evolution of phenotypic traits in rodent teeth; Elodie Renvoisé and Sophie Montuire
19. Diversity and evolution of femoral variation in Ctenohystrica; Laura A. B. Wilson and Madeleine Geiger
20. Morphological disparity of the postcranial skeleton in rodents and its implications for palaeobiological inferences: the case of the extinct Theriodomyidae (Rodentia, Mammalia); Monique Vianey-Liaud, Lionel Hautier and Laurent Marivaux

Index

Customer Reviews

Biography

Philip G. Cox is a lecturer at the Department of Archaeology, University of York and the Hull York Medical School, and a researcher into the functional morphology of and evolution of mammals, particularly rodents. Much of his research has involved the application of sophisticated engineering techniques, namely finite element analysis, to rodent skulls and mandibles in order to understand the biomechanics of feeding in these species.

Lionel Hautier is a researcher (CR2) at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) posted at the Institute of Evolutionary Sciences in Montpellier (ISEM). He is a vertebrate palaeontologist, specialising in mammals and notably rodents. His research interests include the evolution of the masticatory apparatus of extinct and extant rodents, studied using morphological (osteological and myological), morphometrical, and palaeontological evidence.


Contributors:
- Jean-Louis Hartenberger
- W. Patrick Luckett
- Lionel Hautier
- Philip G. Cox
- Pierre-Henri Fabre
- Emmanuel J. P. Douzery
- Mary R. Dawson
- Franck Barbière
- Laurent Marivaux
- Diego H. Verzi
- Cecilia C. Morgan
- A. Itatí Olivares
- Andrés Rinderknecht
- R. Ernesto Blanco
- Christiane Denys
- Alisa Winkler
- V. Louise Roth
- John M. Mercer
- P. David Polly
- Andrea Cardini
- Edward B. Davis
- Scott Steppan
- Renaud Lebrun
- Sabrina Renaud
- Jean-Pierre Quére
- Johan R. Michaux
- Robert E. Druzinsky
- Nathan Jeffery
- Matthew J. Mason
- Cyril Charles
- Laurent Viriot
- Helder Gomes Rodrigues
- Vincent Lazzari
- Franck Guy
- Pierre-Emmanuel Salais
- Adélaïde Euriat
- Paul Tafforeau
- Jacques Michaux
- Elodie Renvoisé
- Sophie Montuire
- Laura A. B. Wilson
- Madeleine Geiger
- Monique Vianey-Liaud