The study of flowers provides a unique insight into the biology and evolution of flowering plants as a whole. The comparative study of flowers began in temperate regions and as a consequence most books on flowers are concerned with temperate plants. In contrast, this volume concentrates on tropical flowers which, whilst sharing many of the features seen in temperate flowers, exhibit phenomena which are purely tropical. The first part of the volume deals with general structural and biological features of flowers and shows facets of their diversity. The second part focuses on the flowers of selected tropical plants and emphasizes their structural and biological idiosyncrasies and evolutionary features. New trends in the study of floral evolution and the role of flowers in the study of flowering plant phylogeny are also outlined.
Douglas E. Soltis, Pamela S. Soltis (both: U. of Florida-Gainesville), Peter K. Endress (U. of Zurich), and Mark W. Chase (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) synthesize the new understanding of the phylogeny
