Cladistics: Theory and Practice of Parsimony Analysis (The ^ASystematics Association Special Volume) - Hardcover

Kitching, Ian; Forey, Peter; Humphries, Christopher; Williams, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0198501390 ISBN 13: 9780198501398

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1998

Synopsis

Cladistics aims to reconstruct genealogies based on common ancestry, thus revealing the phylogenetic relationships between taxa. Its applications vary from linguistic analysis to the study of conservation and biodiversity, and it has become a method of choice for comparative studies in all fields of biiology. This new edition of Cladistics--first published in 1992--reflects the many changes and developments which have taken place in the field over the last five years, while retaining the clarity and readability that made the first edition so successful. For all students interested in the systematic relationships among organisms, this book provides a state-of-the-art account of the techniques and methods of modern cladistics, and how to put them into practice.

About this title

About the Author

Ian Kitching, Peter Forey, Christopher Humphries, and David Williams are all at the Natural History Museum, London.

Review

"Cladistics is defined in this work as a 'method of systematic classification that aims to reconstruct genealogies based on common ancestry, thus revealing the phylogenetic relationships between taxa'. Cladistics is the method of choice for comparative studies in the construction of cladograms and consensus trees. Three-item statements, another method of representing relationships, is also discussed. The text will be of interest to students, teachers, and researchers. Cladograms and consensus tree supplement the text."--Biological Abstracts/RRM®

"The last several years have yielded developments on all fronts in cladistic analysis--from how we view characters to tree building methods to interpretations of patterns. Hence, an update of this book that pulls together these advancements is most welcome. While the first edition was essentially a collection of course notes on various topics relevant to cladistics, the second edition is quite different. The scope has been narrowed and refocused, and the new book is one-fifth longer than the original. . . . New topics covered include tree support, combination of data sets, and the still controversial three-taxon analysis method. . . . There are also summaries of the key points in each chapter, a list of recommended references, a glossary, and an appendix of relevant computer software. . . . [Useful] as an upper level textbook or a concise reference for those involved with parsimony analyses."--The Quarterly Review of Biology

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0198501390
• ISBN 13: 9780198501398
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 242