Download or read book Mammalogy written by George A. Feldhamer and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2015-01-15 with total page 764 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reflecting the expertise and perspective of five leading mammalogists, the fourth edition of Mammalogy: Adaptation, Diversity, Ecology significantly updates taxonomy, includes a new chapter on mammalian molecular phylogenetics, and highlights several recently described species. There are close to 5,500 species in the class Mammalia, including the blue whale—the largest animal that has ever lived—and the pygmy shrew, which weighs little more than a penny. The functional diversity of mammals has allowed them to play critical roles in every ecosystem, whether marine, freshwater, alpine, tundra, forest, or desert. Many mammal species are critically endangered and present complex conservation and management challenges. This book touches on those challenges, which are often precipitated by overharvesting and habitat loss, as well as emerging threats, such as the impact of wind turbines and white nose syndrome on bats and chronic wasting disease on deer. Among the updates and additions to the fourth edition of Mammalogy are numerous new photos, figures, and cladograms, over 4,200 references, as well as • A completely new chapter on mammalian phylogeny and genomics • Current taxonomy—including major changes to orders, suborders, and superfamilies of bats and rodents • An explanation of the recent inclusion of whales with terrestrial even-toed ungulates • Updates on mammalian structural, functional adaptations, and fossil history • recent advances in our understanding of phylogeny, biogeography, social behavior, and ecology • A discussion of two new orders and thirteen newly recognized extant families • Reflections on the implications of climate change for mammals • Thorough examinations of several recently described species, including Durrell's vontsira (Salanoia durrelli) and the Laotian rock rat (Laonastes aenigmamus) • An explanation of mammalian biomechanics, such as that seen in lunge feeding of baleen whales • Breakout boxes on unique aspects of mammals, including the syntax of bat songs, singing mice, and why there are no green mammals (unless we count algae-covered sloths) Maintaining the accessible, readable style for which Feldhamer and his coauthors are well known, this new edition of Mammalogy is the authoritative textbook on this amazingly diverse class of vertebrates.

Download or read book A Field Guide to the Mammals of Central America and Southeast Mexico written by and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2009-11-05 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the only comprehensive guide to mammals in Central America and Southeast Mexico. Unlike most field guides, it covers smaller mammals in depth and also provides an extensive bibliography. In addition to detailed species accounts and range maps for all species, the book has 52 full-color plates. The 49 animal plates cover almost all the species in the region. 4 color maps are new to the second edition, detailing parks, elevations and biomes in the region.

Download or read book Mammals of South America Volume 2 written by James L. Patton and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2015-03-09 with total page 1363 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The second installment in a planned three-volume series, this book provides the first substantive review of South American rodents published in over fifty years. Increases in the reach of field research and the variety of field survey methods, the introduction of bioinformatics, and the explosion of molecular-based genetic methodologies have all contributed to the revision of many phylogenetic relationships and to a doubling of the recognized diversity of South American rodents. The largest and most diverse mammalian order on Earth—and an increasingly threatened one—Rodentia is also of great ecological importance, and Rodents is both a timely and exhaustive reference on these ubiquitous creatures. From spiny mice and guinea pigs to the oversized capybara, this book covers all native rodents of South America, the continental islands of Trinidad and Tobago, and the Caribbean Netherlands off the Venezuelan coast. It includes identification keys and descriptions of all genera and species; comments on distribution; maps of localities; discussions of subspecies; and summaries of natural, taxonomic, and nomenclatural history. Rodents also contains a detailed list of cited literature and a separate gazetteer based on confirmed identifications from museum vouchers and the published literature.

Download or read book Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History written by and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 872 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Mammal Teeth written by Peter S. Ungar and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2010-10-01 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner, 2010 PROSE Award for Excellence in the Biological Sciences. Professional and Scholarly Publishing division of the Association of American Publishers In this unique book, Peter S. Ungar tells the story of mammalian teeth from their origin through their evolution to their current diversity. Mammal Teeth traces the evolutionary history of teeth, beginning with the very first mineralized vertebrate structures half a billion years ago. Ungar describes how the simple conical tooth of early vertebrates became the molars, incisors, and other forms we see in mammals today. Evolutionary adaptations changed pointy teeth into flatter ones, with specialized shapes designed to complement the corresponding jaw. Ungar explains tooth structure and function in the context of nutritional needs. The myriad tooth shapes produced by evolution offer different solutions to the fundamental problem of how to squeeze as many nutrients as possible out of foods. The book also highlights Ungar's own path-breaking studies that show how microwear analysis can help us understand ancient diets. The final part of the book provides an in-depth examination of mammalian teeth today, surveying all orders in the class, family by family. Ungar describes some of the more bizarre teeth, such as tusks, and the mammal diversity that accompanies these morphological wonders. Mammal Teeth captures the evolution of mammals, including humans, through the prism of dental change. Synthesizing decades of research, Ungar reveals the interconnections among mammal diet, dentition, and evolution. His book is a must-read for paleontologists, mammalogists, and anthropologists.

Download or read book Biodiversity Conservation in Costa Rica written by Gordon W. Frankie and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2004-02-06 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Annotation A collection of papers regarding the conservation of Costa Rica's tropical dry forest, which is disappearing more rapidly than its rain forest, due to ease of conversion to agriculture.

Download or read book The Mammals of Costa Rica written by Mark Wainwright and published by Comstock Publishing Associates. This book was released on 2007 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "First published 2002 as The natural history of Costa Rican mammals by Zona Tropical"--T.p. verso.

Download or read book Mammals of Costa Rica written by George Gilbert Goodwin and published by . This book was released on 1946 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Monteverde written by Nalini M. Nadkarni and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2000-03-09 with total page 598 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve has captured the worldwide attention of biologists, conservationists, and ecologists and has been the setting for extensive investigation over the past 30 years. Roughly 40,000 ecotourists visit the Cloud Forest each year, and it is often considered the archetypal high-altitude rain forest.This volume brings together some of the most prominent researchers of the region to provide a broad introduction to the biology of the Monteverde, and cloud forests in general. Collecting and synthesizing vital information about the ecosystem and its biota, the book also examines the positive and negative effects of human activity on both the forest and the surrounding communities. Ecologists, tropical biologists, and natural historians will find this volume an indispensable resource, as will all those who are fascinated by the magnificent wonders of the tropical forests.

Download or read book Taxonomic revision of the olingos Bassaricyon with description of a new species the Olinguito written by Kristofer M. Helgen and published by PenSoft Publishers LTD. This book was released on 2013-08-15 with total page 89 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper presents the first comprehensive taxonomic revision of the olingos, Bassaricyon, based on most available museum specimens, with data derived from anatomy, mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, fieldwork, and geographic range modeling. Olingos are forest-living, arboreal, nocturnal, frugivorous, and solitary, and have one young at a time. Four olingo species can be recognized, including a Central American species (B. gabbii) and lowland species with eastern, cis-Andean (B. alleni) and western, trans-Andean (B. medius) distributions. Surprisingly, the sister lineage to all previously described species of Bassaricyon is an Andean cloud forest species, which we call the Olinguito, that has never been previously described. Bassaricyon neblina sp. n., en-demic to Colombia and Ecuador, is the smallest living member of the family Procyonidae and the first new species of Carnivora named in the American continents in 35 years. We describe four subspecies of Olinguito across the Northern Andes.

Download or read book Bees and Forest in the Tropics written by and published by . This book was released on 1992* with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Fossil Penguins written by George Gaylord Simpson and published by . This book was released on 1946 with total page 516 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species written by Jonathan Baillie and published by IUCN. This book was released on 2004 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Applies Red List data to calculate a Red List Index.

Download or read book Rabbits Hares and Pikas written by Joseph A. Chapman and published by IUCN. This book was released on 1990 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Action Plan provides an overview of the state of knowledge about all species of lagomorphs, provides a contemporary framework about their importance to humans and the world’s ecosystems, reviews their status on a worldwide scale, and makes recommendations for conservation action to prevent the extinction of any lagomorph species and to allow their populations to recover to safe and production levels.

Download or read book Biotic Communities written by David Earl Brown and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Biotic Communities catalogs and defines by biome, or biotic community, the region centered on Arizona, New Mexico, Sonora, Chihuahua, and Baja California Norte, plus portions of California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Texas, Coahuila, Sinaloa, and Baja California Sur. This ambitious guide is an essential companion for anyone working in natural resources management and ecological research, as well as nonspecialists looking for solid information about a particular southwestern locale. Biotic Communities is arranged by climatic formation with a short chapter for each biome describing climate, physiognomy, distribution, dominant and common plant species, and characteristic vertebrates. Subsequent chapters contain careful descriptions of zonal subdivisions.

Download or read book Costa Rican Ecosystems written by Maarten Kappelle and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016-04-15 with total page 798 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1502, Christopher Columbus named Costa Rica, and while gold and silver never materialized to justify the moniker of rich coast in purely economic terms, scientists and ecotravelers alike have long appreciated its incredible wealth. Wealth in Costa Rica is best measured by its biodiversityhome to a dizzying number of plants and animals, many endemic, it s a country that has long encouraged and welcomed researchers from the world over, and is exemplary in the creation and commitment to indigenous conservation and management programs. Costa Rica is considered to have the best preserved natural resources in Latin America. Approximately nine percent (about 1,000,000 acres) of Costa Rica has been protected in 15 national parks, and a comparable amount of land is protected as wildlife refuges, forest reserves or Indian reservations. This long-awaited synthesis of Costa Rican ecosystems is an authoritative presentation of the paleoecology, biogeography, structure, conservation, and sustainable use of Costa Rica s ecosystems. It systematically covers the entire range of Costa Rica s natural and managed, terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, including its island systems (Cocos Islands), the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and shores (coasts, coral reefs, mangrove forests), its lowlands (dry, season and wet forests), its highlands (the northern volcanoes and southern Talamanca s), and its estuaries, rivers, lakes, swamps and bogs. The volume s integrated, comprehensive format will be welcomed by tropical and temperate biologists alike, by biogeographers, plant and animal ecologists, marine biologists, conservation biologists, foresters, policy-makers and all scientists, natural history specialists and all with an interest in Costa Rica s ecosystems."

Download or read book The Butterfly Book written by William Jacob Holland and published by . This book was released on 1903 with total page 608 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: