This book gathers the expertise of 30 evolutionary biologists from around the globe to highlight how applying the field of quantitative genetics - the analysis of the genetic basis of complex traits - aids in the study of wild populations.

The impetus for this book arose out of my previous book, The Evolution of Life Histories (Roff, 1992). In that book I presented a single chapter on quanti tative genetic theory. However, as the book was concerned with the evolution of life histories and traits connected to this, the presence of quantitative genetic variation was an underlying theme throughout. Much of the focus was placed on optimality theory, for it is this approach that has proven to be extremely successful in the analysis of life history variation. But quantitative genetics cannot be ig nored, because there are some questions for which optimality approaches are inappropriate; for example, although optimality modeling can address the ques tion of the maintenance of phenotypic variation, it cannot say anything about genetic variation, on which further evolution clearly depends. The present book is, thus, a natural extension of the first. I have approached the problem not from the point of view of an animal or plant breeder but from that of one interested in understanding the evolution of quantitative traits in wild populations. The subject is large with a considerable body of theory: I generally present the assumptions underlying the analysis and the results, giving the relevant references for those interested in the intervening mathematics. My interest is in what quantitative genetics tells me about evolutionary processes; therefore, I have concentrated on areas of research most relevant to field studies.

Although the field of quantitative genetics - the study of the genetic basis of variation in quantitative characteristics such as body size, or reproductive success - is almost 100 years old, its application to the study of evolutionary processes in wild populations has expanded greatly over the last few decades. During this time, the use of 'wild quantitative genetics' has provided insights into a range of important questions in evolutionary ecology, ranging from studies conducting research in well-established fields such as life-history theory, behavioural ecology and sexual selection, to others addressing relatively new issues such as populations' responses to climate change or the process of senescence in natural environments. Across these fields, there is increasing appreciation of the need to quantify the genetic - rather than just the phenotypic - basis and diversity of key traits, the genetic basis of the associations between traits, and the interaction between these genetic effects and the environment. This research activity has been fuelled by methodological advances in both molecular genetics and statistics, as well as by exciting results emerging from laboratory studies of evolutionary quantitative genetics, and the increasing availability of suitable long-term datasets collected in natural populations, especially in animals. Quantitative Genetics in the Wild is the first book to synthesize the current level of knowledge in this exciting and rapidly-expanding area. This comprehensive volume also offers exciting perspectives for future studies in emerging areas, including the application of quantitative genetics to plants or arthropods, unraveling the molecular basis of variation in quantitative traits, or estimating non-additive genetic variance. Since this book deals with many fundamental questions in evolutionary ecology, it should be of interest to graduate, post-graduate students, and academics from a wide array of fields such as animal behaviour, ecology, evolution, and genetics.

A timely update of a highly popular handbook on statistical genomics This new, two-volume edition of a classic text provides a thorough introduction to statistical genomics, a vital resource for advanced graduate students, early-career researchers and new entrants to the field. It introduces new and updated information on developments that have occurred since the 3rd edition. Widely regarded as the reference work in the field, it features new chapters focusing on statistical aspects of data generated by new sequencing technologies, including sequence-based functional assays. It expands on previous coverage of the many processes between genotype and phenotype, including gene expression and epigenetics, as well as metabolomics. It also examines population genetics and evolutionary models and inference, with new chapters on the multi-species coalescent, admixture and ancient DNA, as well as genetic association studies including causal analyses and variant interpretation. The Handbook of Statistical Genomics focuses on explaining the main ideas, analysis methods and algorithms, citing key recent and historic literature for further details and references. It also includes a glossary of terms, acronyms and abbreviations, and features extensive cross-referencing between chapters, tying the different areas together. With heavy use of up-to-date examples and references to web-based resources, this continues to be a must-have reference in a vital area of research. Provides much-needed, timely coverage of new developments in this expanding area of study Numerous, brand new chapters, for example covering bacterial genomics, microbiome and metagenomics Detailed coverage of application areas, with chapters on plant breeding, conservation and forensic genetics Extensive coverage of human genetic epidemiology, including ethical aspects Edited by one of the leading experts in the field along with rising stars as his co-editors Chapter authors are world-renowned experts in the field, and newly emerging leaders. The Handbook of Statistical Genomics is an excellent introductory text for advanced graduate students and early-career researchers involved in statistical genetics.

Taken together, these studies document both the benefits and pitfalls of quantitative genetics.

This impressive author team brings the wealth of advances in conservation genetics into the new edition of this introductory text, including new chapters on population genomics and genetic issues in introduced and invasive species. They continue the strong learning features for students - main points in the margin, chapter summaries, vital support with the mathematics, and further reading - and now guide the reader to software and databases. Many new references reflect the expansion of this field. With examples from mammals, birds ...