This book describes how evolutionary history is studied using several well-known examples and also using evolutionary trees. Evolutionary trees are analyzed and used to explain adaptive radiations of orchids and the diversification of bats over geologic time. Evolutionary trees and genetic evidence is used to infer when and from what ancestors terrestrial plants evolved and invaded land. Specific adaptations of early land plants led to the evolution...

Reintroduces the author's work about the theory of evolution with over three hundred fifty illustrations and photographs, accompanied by excerpts from his diaries, letters, and other writings.

"This book introduces a new field that unites history and biology to create a fuller understanding of the past"-- "We tend to see history and evolution springing from separate roots, one grounded in the human world and the other in the natural world. Human beings have, however, become probably the most powerful species shaping evolution today, and human-caused evolution in other species has probably been the most important force shaping human history....

"A fun, pocket-sized book presenting the remarkable dinosaurs and other creatures that roamed Earth billions of years ago"--