Ruth Gustafson
Student Services
Student Services and Researcher Services Librarian
530-752-1883
by Ruth Gustafson – February 7, 2022
This guide lists resources related to evolutionary biology which are useful for locating literature across a range of topics including: evolution of behavior; evolutionary and population genetics; genomes and the evolution of development; history of evolutionary thought; human evolution; phylogenetics and the history of life; selection and adaptation; and speciation and macroevolution. To access licensed library resources from off-campus, please use the library VPN. Ruth is happy to help if you have questions or need additional assistance.
FOR UCD students, faculty, and staff: With the re-opening of campus on Jan 31, 2022, feel free to book an appointment with Ruth for assistance in using these resources or for any questions you may have. Ruth will continue with Zoom appointments. (Exceptions will be made if in-person is the only/best option for the requestor.)
Student Services
Student Services and Researcher Services Librarian
530-752-1883
Searching in a library catalog requires looking for broader topics such as evolutionary genetics or human evolution rather than the more specific metapopulation gene flow or fossil hominid microstructure.
Author: Library Instruction Services, Shields Library
Library of Congress Classification is used for all of the UCD libraries except the health sciences libraries (which use NLM — National Library of Medicine — classification). Learn about how books are arranged in the UCD libraries with this guide.
Date: 2004
Started in 2010, the entire journal is dedicated to protocols, field methods and “promotes the development of new methods in ecology & evolution, and facilitates their dissemination and uptake by the research community.”
Allows searching of the full text “of more than 7,500 of Charles Darwin’s letters” and locating “information on 7,500 more. [Includes] complete transcripts of all known letters Darwin wrote and received up to the year 1869.”
The Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) is a consortium of natural history and botanical libraries worldwide that cooperate to digitize and make accessible the legacy literature of biodiversity held in their collections and to make that literature available for open access and responsible use as a part of a global “biodiversity commons.” BHL also serves as the foundational literature component of the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL) with access provided to texts “with information on over a 150 million species names.” {RG 12/11/13}
An “extensive, annotated bibliography of the most important concepts and ideas in the discipline” of evolutionary biology. Articles range from adaptation to tetrapod evolution including “genome sequencing and evolutionary developmental biology”. As the Editor in Chief notes, this field is changing rapidly being at the “nexus of two developments, which jointly allow an understanding of evolutionary processes never before possible. First is the ability to sequence entire genomes, and second is the means to study natural populations over long periods of time.” The Evolutionary Biology Bibliography is kept current as follows: each article receives an annual formal review; and about 50-75 new articles are added each year.
See the list of Oxford Bibliographies Online to which UC Davis subscribes.
The 2nd edition of this 7 volume comprehensive work covers all aspects of biodiversity. “Major themes of the work include the evolution of biodiversity, systems for classifying and defining biodiversity, ecological patterns and theories of biodiversity, and an assessment of contemporary patterns and trends in biodiversity.” Over 320 articles with “approximately 1,800 figures and 350 tables complement the text, and more than 3,000 glossary entries explain key terms”. Topics range from: Agriculture; Conservation & Restoration; Economics of Biodiversity; Environmental Conditions & Effects; Evolution; Extinctions; Genetics; Geographic & Global Issues; Habitats & Ecosystems; Human Effects & Interventions; Invertebrates; Microbial Diversity; Plant Biodiversity; Population Issues; Public Policies & Attitudes; Species Interactions & Interrelationships; Systematics & Species Concept; Techniques & Measurements; Theories & Concepts of Biodiversity; to Vertebrates
Extensive, completely revised and updated 17-volume version of the original work published in Germany in 1960. Incorporates recent developments in the animal world as noted by prominent advisors and contributors from the scientific community. Volume 1 covers Lower metazoans and lesser deuterostomes and volume 2 is on Protostomes. Volume 3 is about Insects. Volumes 4-5 are both concerning Fishes. Volume 6 pertains to Amphibians and volume 7 is about Reptiles. Volumes 8-11 are all concerning Birds. Volumes 12-16 are on Mammals and lastly, volume 17 is the cumulative index.
•Each entry by family includes taxonomic placement & brief details including thumbnail description, size, number of genera/species, habitat, conservation status, & distribution map.
•Detailed sections describe: evolution & systematics; physical characteristics; distribution; habitat; behavior; feeding ecology & diet; reproductive biology; conservation status; significance to humans; and end with lengthy species accounts
This encyclopedia incorporates research on “the behavior of animals and humans and the neurobiological and physiological processes that control it”. This three-volume set covers all areas of behavioral neuroscience with a total of 210 chapters.Topics range from: Addiction; Animal Models of Behavior; Behavioral Genetics; Brain Aging; Brain Structure & Function; Cognitive Neuroscience; Disease & Dysfunction; Developmental Biology; Emotion & Emotional Behavior; Ethology & Neuroethology; Evolution & Comparative Biology; History; Language & Communication; Learning & Memory; Molecular Neurobiology; Motivation & Reward; Motor Systems & Motor Control; Neuroplasticity; Psychoneuroendocrinology; Reproductive, Parental & Sexual behavior; Sensation & Perception; Sleeping, Waking & Arousal; Social Behavior/Cognition; and Stress.
This classic encyclopedia covering scientists from all time periods and all fields of science has been completely revised. This “complete” online version includes all the entries from both the new (2008) edition and the original edition.