Evolution and systematics
Dr Ian Campbell
4 points * Two 1-hour lectures and one 2.5-hour practical * Second semester * Clayton * Prerequisites BIO1011 and BIO1022 or BIO1032 or BIO1042 * Prohibitions: BOT2022, ZOO2022
Objectives At the completion of this subject students should understand the principles of the major systematic philosophies and the implications of their application to classifying organism diversity; the historical development of evolutionary theory; the evidence for evolution; the fundamental processes of evolution.
Synopsis This subject is designed to provide a basis for a better understanding of a wide range of biological phenomena. The emphasis is on evolution as a unifying process in biology. After an introduction to the theory of evolutionary systematics, there is an explanation of the different classificatory systems that are in common use. The differences between phenetics and cladistics and the different classifications that result from the application of these approaches are explored in some detail. Further topics are then developed: the role of vicariance and dispersal in biogeography; the sources and maintenance of genetic variation in natural populations; competition and natural selection; speciation processes; isolating mechanisms and hybrid zones in vertebrates; hybridisation processes in higher plants; evolution of higher categories and evolutionary rates.
Assessment Theory examination: 55% * Practical reports: 30% * Essay: 15%
Prescribed texts
Price P Biological evolution Saunders, 1996
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