Parascript: Parasites and the Language of Evolution

Abstract

The basic theme of this book is that parasites are not different from free-living organisms in their evo? lutionary biology. As a first step, phylogenetic rela? tionships among taxa within groups of parasites must be established using the methods of phylogenetic sys? tematics. Once this has been done, the systematic data base can be used to explore a wide range of questions in parasite evolutionary biology. The authors have demonstrated how this can be done, and in the pro? cess they have laid to rest a few myths and miscon? ceptions about parasites. Their data base, which is most comprehensive for the parasitic flatworms, is included as an appendix. The book is brim-full of ideas that will certainly take much time to digest. For a casual reader picking up the book from a library shelf, the views of Brooks and McLennan are best summarized in the section entitled Overture, starting on page 205. Placing an overture near the end of the text struck me as odd? unless it is intended to state the motifs to be devel?