Systematics Evolution And Ecology Of Melastomataceae

This book presents a synthesis of critical new information for the Melastomataceae, one of the ten richest families among flowering plants with over 5,800 species that has its diversity highly concentrated in tropical or subtropical areas. It describes the family’s global diversity and distribution and summarizes recent advances in systematics, evolution, biogeography, reproductive biology and ecology.

Monocots: Systematics and Evolution presents leading work from around the world on non-grass monocotyledons and includes reviews and current research into their comparative biology, phylogeny and classification. The papers are based on presentations at the Second International Conference on the Comparative Biology of the Monocotyledons, Monocots II, held in Sydney, Australia in late 1998. Many were subsequently updated or extended to take into account new information. All 72 papers have been peer-reviewed.

The succulent species of the families of subclass Rosidae are presented by alphabet of families, genera, and species, with comprehensive listings of synonyms added at all levels. Detailed descriptions are given for all accepted taxa, together with data on the distribution and typification, and references to the most important literature. Where necessary, information on ecology, ethnobotany, history, etc. is added, and in many places, proposed relationships are critically discussed. The volume covers the succulents from the families Anacardiacae, Begoniaceae, Bixaceae, Brassicaceae, Burseraceae, Capparaceae, Caricaceae, Clusiaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Francoaceae, Geraniaceae, Malvaceae, Melastomataceae, Meliaceae, Moraceae, Moringaceae, Oxalidaceae, Passifloraceae, Sapindaceae, Tropaeolaceae, Urticaceae, Vitaceae and Zygophyllaceae.

"This spectacular book does full justice to the Compositae (Asteraceae), the largest and most successful flowering plant family with some 1700 genera and 24,000 species. It is an indispensable reference, providing the most up-to-date hypotheses of phylogenetic relationships in the family based on molecular and morphological characters, along with the corresponding subfamilial and tribal classification. The 2009 work not only integrates the extensive molecular phylogenetic analyses conducted in the last 25 years, but also uses these to produce a metatree for about 900 taxa of Compositae. The book contains 44 chapters, contributed by 80 authors, covering the history, economic importance, character variation, and systematic and phylogenetic diversity of the family. The emphasis of this work is phylogenetic; its chapters provide a detailed, current, and thoroughly documented presentation of the major (and not so major) clades in the family, citing some 2632 references. Like the Compositae, the book is massive, diverse, and fascinating. It is beautifully illustrated, with 170 figures, and an additional 108 cladograms (all consistently color-coded, based on the geographic range of the included taxa); within these figures are displayed 443 color photographs, clearly demonstrating the amazing array of floral and vegetative form expressed by members of the clade." --NHBS Environment Bookstore.

The shift from traditional taxonomic methods to data-oriented, analytical cladistic methodologies has led to a better understanding of biological processes and more accurate classifications for a wide range of organisms, including mosses. Pleurocarpous Mosses: Systematics and Evolution explores the impact of these methods through recent breakthroug

This volume includes treatments of systematics and related topics for both fungi and fungus-like organisms in four eukaryotic supergroups, as well as specialized chapters on nomenclature, techniques and evolution. These organisms are of great interest to mycologists, plant pathologists and others, including those interested in the animal parasitic Microsporidia. Our knowledge of the systematics and evolution of fungi has made great strides since the first edition of this volume, largely driven by molecular phylogenetic analyses. Consensus among mycologists has led to a stable systematic treatment that has since become widely adopted and is incorporated into this second edition, along with a great deal of new information on evolution and ecology. The systematic chapters cover occurrence, distribution, economic importance, morphology and ultrastructure, development of taxonomic theory, classification, and maintenance and culture. Other chapters deal with nomenclatural changes necessitated by revisions of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi and plants, including the elimination of separate names for asexual states, as well as methods for preservation of cultures and specimens, character evolution and methods for ultrastructural study, the fungal fossil record, and the impact of whole genomes on fungal studies.