Skip to main content

Developmental Innovation and Phenotypic Novelty

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Evolutionary Developmental Biology

Abstract

The explanation of phenotypic novelties is a central goal of evo-devo. Building on earlier classifications, three types of novelties are distinguished, here renamed constituting novelty, discretizing novelty, and individualizing novelty. A discussion of developmental innovation processes and modeling approaches highlights the central roles of generic material properties and process dynamics in novelty formation. Whereas individualizing novelty is consistent with the standard modes of variation, constituting novelty and discretizing novelty give rise to evolutionary innovation, a class of phenotypic change regarded as distinct from adaptive variation. A developmental theory of innovation privileges emergent development over genetic variation in the explanation of phenotypic novelty.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

References

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gerd B. Müller .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Section Editor information

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Müller, G.B. (2020). Developmental Innovation and Phenotypic Novelty. In: Nuno de la Rosa, L., Müller, G. (eds) Evolutionary Developmental Biology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33038-9_66-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33038-9_66-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-33038-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-33038-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics