Author: Rong Jiayu
Language: Chinese,Latin names and detailedEnglish abstract
ISBN/ISSN: 7030174410
2006; Hardcover;210x285mm;962

All parts of this book have been derived from a major project on the “Origination, Radiation, Extinction, and Recovery in the Geological History” involving over 70 Palaeontoloists (mostly Chinese, with some non-Chinese nationals as collaborators). This 5-year project was approved by the Chinese National Ministry of Science and Technology in the spring of 2000, indicating a strong support of Chinese government to the study of palaeontology. It was completed in September 2005 and evaluated in October 2005. In the first three years of the programme (2000-2003) most of the participants investigated on one of the two major themes “Extinction and its subsequent recovery” based on the considerable material from South China. This led to the publication of two volumes of the book “Mass Extinction and Recover: Evidences from the Palaeozoic and Triassic of South China” including the end Ordovician, Frasnian-Fammenian, and the end Permian mass extinctions and their subsequent survivals and recoveries that were written in Chinese with an English abstract.

As a companion contribution, the focus of this book has turned to the other major theme of the project “Origination, radiation, and biodiversity” which forms the basis of the papers included in this book written in Chinese and an English summary. The present book involves the following contents: (1) the earliest known metazoan fossils of China. i.e. latest Precambrian Weng’an Fana from Guizhou, (2) the Early “Cambrian Explosion” including the Meishucun and Chengjiang faunas mostly from South China. (3) Ordovician radiation of marine biotas mainly of South China, (4) Late Palaeozoic radiation of some common marine organism groups (such as brachiopods, rugose corals, and fusulinids) (5) the Early Cretaceous vertebrates, in particular, the origination of birds, feather, and flight in pterosaurs, based on materials from the Jehol Biota, NE China, and (6) Ediacaran (latest Proterozoic) to Triassic biodiversity changes of the South China Block. Moreover, changes of Silurian and Early Devonian vascular plants, early evolutionary radiation of fish, depressive and improvement of Early Triassic marine ecosystem, evolutionary radiation of Middle and Late Triassic marine bivalves and reptiles in South China, and diversification and radiation of early Mesozoic Gingo have also been investigated in the light of new data from China.

Table of Contents


CONTENTS

Preface
Chapter 1
The Chinese Fossil Record’s Bearings on Biotic Evolution
Chapter 2 Originations and Radiations of Early Life
2.1Radiation of Neoproterozoic Doushantuo Eukaryotes
2.2Origin of Skeletonization in Metazoa
2.3Explosive Radiation of Early Cambrian Skeletal Faunas in South China
2.4Earliest Evolutionary Lineage of Early Cambrian Univalved Mollusks
2.5Punctuated Radiation, Possible Mechanism and Molecular Background in the Dawn of Animals
2.6Preliminary Study on Phylogeny of Chengjiang Deuterostomes
2.7The Early Body Plan, Origin and Evolutionary Radiation of Priapulida
2.8Dinocaridids-Anomalous Arthropods or Arthropod-like Worms?
2.9Phylochronological Analysis of Metazoan Groups: Combined Evidence from Molecular and Fossil Data
Chapter 3 Early Palaeozoic Radiations and Biodiversity Changes
3.1A Briefto the Evolutionary Radiation of Ordovician Graptolites
3.2Ordovician Trilobite Radiation in the South China Block
3.3Ordovician Bivalve Radiation in Southern China, with a Discussion on the Causes of Diversification
3.4Early to Mid Ordovician Brachiopod Radiation of South China
3.5Evolutionary Radiation of the Early-Mid Ordovician Graptolites in South China
3.6Radiation of Early-Middle Ordovician Acritarchs in South China
3.7Sea-level changes During the Early-Mid Ordovician Radiation of South China
3.8Early Silurian (Llandovery) Rugose Coral Radiation in the Upper Yangtze Region
Chapter 4 Late Palaeozoic Radiations and Biodiversity Changes
4.1Diversity of Early Land Vascular Plants in the Silurian and Devonian of China
4.2Early Diversification of Sarcopterygians and Trans-Panthalassic Ocean Distribution
4.3Biodiversity of Devonian Rugose Corals from South China
4.4Diversity and Evolutionary Characters of Devonian Brachiopods in South China
4.5Diversity Pattern of Tournaisian Brachiopods in South China
4.6Carboniferous and Permian Rugose Corals of South China: Diversity Pattern and Paleoenvironmental Implications
4.7Brachiopod Diversity Pattern of South China from Carboniferous to Triassic
4.8Radiation of the Fusulinoideans Between the Two Phases of the End-Permian Mass Extinction, South China
Chapter 5 Mesozoic Originations and Radiations
5.1Early Mesozoic Radiation and Diversification of Ginkgoaleans
5.2Middle and Late Triassic Bivalve Radiation in South China
5.3Marine Ecosystem Evolution at the Beginning of the Mesozoic in South China
5.4Radiation of Triassic Marine Reptiles in South China
5.5Palaeobotanical Data-the Direct and Decisive Evidence for Solving the “ABOMINABLE Mystery” of Angiosperm Origin
5.6Origin and Early Evolution of Feather and Feather-like Integuments
5.7Non-avian Coelurosaurian Fossils from the Jehol Group of Western Liaoning the Comments on Origin of Birds
5.8Phylogeny and Early Radiation of Mesozoic Lissamphibians from East Asia
5.9Pterosaur Adaptive Radiation of the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota
5.10Evolution and Radiation of Late Mesozoic Conchostracans in East Asia
5.11Adaptive Radiation of the Jehol Biota and Its Evolutionary Ecological Background
Chapter 6 Cenozoic Radiations
6.1Paleogene Mammal Radiation in China
6.2Evolutionary Process of Neogene Fossil Mammals in China
6.3Evolution and Development of Some Representative Angiospermous Xerophytes in the Cenozoic of China
Chapter 7 Palaeobiodiversity Changes
Patterns of Lates Proterozoic to Early Mesozoic Marine Biodiversity changes in South China ‘
English PartP.819-P.962