Hermaphroditism (eBook)

A Primer on the Biology, Ecology, and Evolution of Dual Sexuality

John Avise (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF | EPUB

2011
Columbia University Press (Verlag)
978-0-231-52715-6 (ISBN)

Infos

John C. Avise is Distinguished Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of California, Irvine. He is an elected member of both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the author or editor of 20 books, including most recently Inside the Human Genome: A Case for Non-intelligent Design; Molecular Ecology and Evolution: The Organismal Side; and Clonality: The Genetics, Ecology, and Evolution of Sexual Abstinence in Vertebrate Animals.

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While it is true that members of most sexually reproducing species can be defined as either male or female, those who belong to the rest of the biological world are not so simply understood. Hermaphroditic creatures reproduce both as male and as female individuals, providing a fascinating glimpse into alternative sexual practices in nature and their ecological and evolutionary successes and failures.Eloquently written by an award-winning biologist and pioneer in molecular ecology, this primer on hermaphroditism traces the phenomenon throughout Earth's myriad species, accounting for the adaptive significance of alternative sexual systems. Accessible and richly illustrated, the text maps the evolutionary origins of hermaphroditism, as well as its historical instances and fictional representations, underscoring the relevance of dual sexuality to our biological, intellectual, and cultural making. John C. Avise describes the genetics, ecology, phylogeny, and natural history of hermaphroditic plants, fish, and invertebrate animals and details organisms that either reproduce simultaneously as male and female or switch routinely between one sex and the other. Filled with surprising creatures and compelling revelations, this textbook stands alone in its clear yet comprehensive treatment of hermaphroditism and its unique challenge to the supremacy of separate sexes.

Inhalt

PrefaceThe Phenomenon of Dual SexualityHermaphroditism in FictionHermaphroditism in the Real World1. Two Sexes in One Maleness and FemalenessAnisogamy and the Separate-sex Condition Sex Ratios in Separate-sex TaxaSex Ratios in Hermaphroditic TaxaHermaphroditism Versus Separate SexesSummary2. Dual-sex PlantsTerminologyAlternative Sexual Systems: Natural History and ExamplesCosexuality Versus DioecySelfing Versus OutcrossingSexual Selection in PlantsSummary3. Dual-sex InvertebratesBiological ExamplesSex Determination and PseudohermaphroditismEvolutionary Histories: Gonochorism and HermaphroditismSelfing Versus OutcrossingSex Allocation in Simultaneous HermaphroditesSex Allocation in Sequential HermaphroditesConclusions About Sex Allocation TheorySexual SelectionSummary4. Dual-sex VertebratesSexual FlexibilitySequential HermaphroditismAdaptive Significance of Alternative ModesSimultaneous HermaphroditismSummaryGlossaryReferences CitedIndex

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 18.3.2011
• Zusatzinfo: 60 line drawings, 5 tables
• Verlagsort: New York
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Evolution
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Genetik / Molekularbiologie
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Ökologie / Naturschutz
• Themenwelt: Technik
• ISBN-10: 0-231-52715-2 / 0231527152
• ISBN-13: 978-0-231-52715-6 / 9780231527156