Evolutionary perspectives on pregnancy

Description

John C. Avise is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Irvine, and an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical Society. Having pioneered and popularized molecular approaches in ecology, natural history, and evolutionary genetics, he has received national and international awards for career contributions to ornithology, molecular ecology, biogeography, marine biology, and wildlife conservation. His most recent book with Columbia University Press is Hermaphroditism: A Primer on the Biology, Ecology, and Evolution of Dual Sexuality. Content: Preface Part I: Distribution and Diversity of Pregnancy 1. One Generation Inside Another The Sexual Lifecycle Ontogenetic and Evolutionary Gradations of Pregnancy Viviparous Pregnancy in the Reproductive Timeline Heterochrony Some Unorthodox Routes to Internal Pregnancy Sexual Inequalities and Female Authority Over Reproduction Other Sexual Asymmetries Related to Biological Parenthood Evolutionary Reconstructions Summary 2. Vertebrate Live-Bearers: The Borne and the Born Viviparity Evolutionary Origins Developmental Sequences Trophic Relationships Between Mother and Fetus The Cast of Viviparous Vertebrates Summary 3. Vertebrate Alternatives to Standard Pregnancy Oviparity: The Borne and the Hatched The Cast of Oviparous Vertebrates Intermediate Conditions and Evolutionary Transitions Summary 4. Nonvertebrate Brooders The Cast of Players Evolutionary Transitions Conflicts Promoted by Brooding Genetic Parentage Assessments Summary 5. Human Pregnancy in Mythology and in Real Life Conception and Contraception Extracorporeal Fertilization Superfetation Twinning or Multibirth Pregnancy Ectopic Pregnancy From Preterm Labor to Prolonged Pregnancy Spontaneous Abortion Induced Abortion and Infanticide Cesarean Section Precocious Puberty Standard Vaginal Delivery The Placenta Menopause Male Pregnancy Summary Part II: Evolutionary Ramifications of Pregnancy 6. Natural Selection During Mammalian Pregnancy Delayed Implantation Polyembryony Dizygotic Twinning Cooperation and Conflict Within the Nuclear Family Evolutionary Conflict in Mother-Offspring Relations Other Categories of Conflict Summary 7. Sexual Selection and Piscine Pregnancy Anisogamy, Sexual Selection, and Animal Mating Behaviors Categories of Sexual Selection Female Pregnancy and Traditional Female Choice Internal Male Pregnancy External Pregnancy Summary 8. Pregnancy in a Comparative Light Sexual Selection and Multiple Mating by the Pregnant Gender Natural Selection Stemming from Pregnancy and Brooding Summary Epilogue Appendix: Molecular-Genetic Parentage Analyses Glossary References Cited Index