[eng] This thesis is the final outcome of the project" Quantitative genetics of craniofacial
traits: a functional approach to heritability", which received support from the Wenner-Gren …

Background In contrast to placental neonates, in which all cranial bones are ossified,
marsupial young have only the bones of the oral region and the exoccipital ossified at birth …

Background The skull of placental mammals constitutes one of the best studied systems for
phenotypic modularity. Several studies have found strong evidence for the conserved …

Morphological variation is unevenly distributed within the mammalian skull; some of its parts
have diversified more than others. It is commonly thought that this pattern of variation is …

Adaptive radiations, bouts of morphological divergence coupled with taxonomic
proliferation, underpin biodiversity. The most widespread model of radiations assumes a …

Many questions about developmental divergence in human (and non‐human primate)
evolution can be fruitfully explored through investigation of the extant primate phenotype …

Background Recent molecular dating estimates for placental mammals echo fossil
inferences for an explosive interordinal diversification, but typically place this event some 10 …

The distinctive anatomy of the crocodylian skull is intimately linked with dietary ecology,
resulting in repeated convergence on blunt-and slender-snouted ecomorphs. These …

The emerging molecular evolutionary tree for placental mammals differs greatly from
morphological trees, leading to repeated suggestions that morphology is uninformative at …

This overview discusses evolution in the context of craniofacial development and
developmental processes. It begins with a discussion of the origins of the craniofacial …