Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic History of North American Vegetation (North of Mexico)

"I strongly recommend this text to readers having a strong background in the biological and geological sciences. For the specialist, species list are provided for the major fossil floras and a list of technical papers is included after each chapter. For the general reader, terms are defined, specialized units of measurements are explained, and widely used common names for familiar plants are given as they are encountered in the text." -- Laurent M. Meillier "Graham has provided us with a very well-written and broadly encompassing tome of the last 100 million years of North American vegetation. Graham proceeds in an orderly fashion by providing us with background information and concepts, for example in present-day climate and vegetation/climate relations. A significant part of the book occupies itself with discussions of methodologists currently used in the studies of paleobotany/palynology, and these discussions include their limitations as well as their strengths." -- Jack A. Wolfe, American Association of Stratigraphic Palynologists, Inc., Sept. 2000 "This work contains nine chapters which discuss the history of changes in the flora of America north of Mexico over the last seventy million years. The species covered are arranged into seven plant formations: tundra, coniferous forest, deciduous forest, grassland, shrubland, desert, and tropical. The book is intended for anyone interested in ecology, paleontology, botany, or biology in general, and it may also be used as a textbook in upper level courses on North American vegetation. Maps, photographs, charts, tables, diagrams, and graphs supplement the text."--Biological Abstracts/RRM® "Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic history of North American vegetation . . . is surely destined to become a classic in its field. . . . [In the conclusion of this book Alan Graham weaves] together all the juicy morsels dispensed in the previous four chapters, [and] provides an update of his biogeographical analysis that he had presented in volume one of Flora of North America (1993). . . . This discussion, along with an analysis of modern biogeographical methods and a brief epilog, make a fitting conclusion to a thorough, thoughtful work. Graham's effort stands out from other single-volume works in that it will no doubt serve equally well as both a referential resource to professionals and as a comprehensive textbook for advanced undergraduates and/or beginning graduate students. It provides useful items of interest to anyone fortunate enough to open the book. Make sure to keep your copy of Graham handy as you are certain to reach for it often."--Taxon "The principal aim of the book, to explain the origin and development of North American plant formations, is clearly defined at the onset and remarkably well achieved considering the broad scope. . . .this is a great book which will serve as an excellent guide for an advanced lecture course and as a palaebotanical guide to the localities of North America." --Divbersity and Distributions "An impressive command of the literature. . . .Integrates the results of large-scale data gathering projects such s the Greeland Ice Core Project and the Deep Sea Drilling Project and the results of modelling efforts to develop an understanding of the planet's biological history." -- Northeastern Naturalist "There has long been a need for a technical book on the Cretaceous and Cenozoic palebotany of North America. Although other books have been written at the layperson's level, the recent book Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic History of North America Vegetation by Alan Graham is the first intended for a more advanced audience. . . .the book is well recommended. . . .It provides an excellent overview of the history of North American floras during the past 70 million years. . . .This book could be adapted for use in a specialized course on paleobotany or terrestrial paleoecology, assuming that the students already have a thorough understanding of botany, ecology, and geology." Palaios "I strongly recommend this text to readers having a strong background in the biological and geological sciences. For the specialist, species list are provided for the major fossil floras and a list of technical papers is included after each chapter. For the general reader, terms are defined, specialized units of measurements are explained, and widely used common names for familiar plants are given as they are encountered in the text." -- Laurent M. Meillier "Graham has provided us with a very well-written and broadly encompassing tome of the last 100 million years of North American vegetation. Graham proceeds in an orderly fashion by providing us with background information and concepts, for example in present-day climate and vegetation/climate relations. A significant part of the book occupies itself with discussions of methodologists currently used in the studies of paleobotany/palynology, and these discussions include their limitations as well as their strengths." -- Jack A. Wolfe, American Association of Stratigraphic Palynologists, Inc., Sept. 2000