Presents a synthesis of the current state of knowledge of the origins of plants on land, integrating current information in paleobotany with physical, chemical, and geological data. Stretching from the Ordovician to the Upper Devonian, the book covers the period of major global change as a result of diversification of plants and their impact on the environment.
IntroductionEmbryophytes on Land: The Ordovician to Lochkovian (Lower Devonian) RecordRustling in the Undergrowth: Animals in Early Terrestrial EcosystemsNew Data on Nothia aphylla Lyon 1964 ex El-Saadawy et Lacey 1979, a Poorly Known Plant from the Lower Devonian Rynie ChertMorphology of Above- and Below-Ground Sturctures in Early Devonian (Pragian-Emsian) PlantsThe Posongchong Floral Assemblages of Southeastern Yunnan, China--Diversity and Disparity in Early Devonian Plant AssemblagesThe Middle Devonian Flora RevisitedThe Origin, Morphology, and Ecophysiology of Early Embryophytes: Neontological and Paleontological PerspectivesBiological Roles for Phenolic Compounds in the Evolution of Early Land PlantsThe Effect of the Rise of Land Plants on Atmospheric CO2 During the PaleozoicEarly Terrestrial Plant Environments: An Example from the Emsian of Gaspe, CanadaEffects of the Middle to Late Devonian Spread of Vascular Land Plants on Weathering Regimes, Marine Biotas, and Global ClimateDiversification of Siluro-Devonian Plant Traces in Paleosols and Influence on Estimates of Paleoatmospheric CO2 Levels
Patricia Gensel is a professor of biology at the University of North Carolina. She is the co-author of Plant Life in the Devonian.Dianne Edwards holds a chair in paleobotany in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Wales. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society and has been President of the Paleontological Association and editor of the Botanical Journal of the Linnaen Society.
This book focuses on our present day understanding of the fossil record of land plants and other organisms. Presents a detailed overview of the diversificaion of the plant kingdom... Very interesting book for students and researchers. Southeastern Naturalist This is an excellent volume that should be purchased not only by all geological libraries but also by anyone with an interest in the evolution of the biosphere-atmosphere system. -- Andrew C. Scott Geological Magazine This book contributes to our knowledge of the exciting story of the origin of plants on land, from an evolutionary and environmental perspective... recommended for advanced researchers in paleobotany and paleoecology of the age of plants invading land. -- Stanislav Mihulka Folia Geobotanica