Download or read book Improbable Destinies written by Jonathan B. Losos and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2018-08-07 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major new book overturning our assumptions about how evolution works Earth’s natural history is full of fascinating instances of convergence: phenomena like eyes and wings and tree-climbing lizards that have evolved independently, multiple times. But evolutionary biologists also point out many examples of contingency, cases where the tiniest change—a random mutation or an ancient butterfly sneeze—caused evolution to take a completely different course. What role does each force really play in the constantly changing natural world? Are the plants and animals that exist today, and we humans ourselves, inevitabilities or evolutionary flukes? And what does that say about life on other planets? Jonathan Losos reveals what the latest breakthroughs in evolutionary biology can tell us about one of the greatest ongoing debates in science. He takes us around the globe to meet the researchers who are solving the deepest mysteries of life on Earth through their work in experimental evolutionary science. Losos himself is one of the leaders in this exciting new field, and he illustrates how experiments with guppies, fruit flies, bacteria, foxes, and field mice, along with his own work with anole lizards on Caribbean islands, are rewinding the tape of life to reveal just how rapid and predictable evolution can be. Improbable Destinies will change the way we think and talk about evolution. Losos's insights into natural selection and evolutionary change have far-reaching applications for protecting ecosystems, securing our food supply, and fighting off harmful viruses and bacteria. This compelling narrative offers a new understanding of ourselves and our role in the natural world and the cosmos.

Download or read book Animal Athletes written by Duncan J. Irschick and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2016 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The study of performance capacity (defined as the ability of an animal to conduct a key task) holds great interest at both ecological and evolutionary levels. In this book, the topic is addressed using examples from throughout the animal kingdom, identifying common themes that transcend taxonomy.

Download or read book Yard Wars written by Glenn D. Glasgow and published by Archway Publishing. This book was released on 2024-04-09 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This piece is a story set in the American southwest, in the yard of a man named Oscar, though it is primarily concerned with the yard’s occupants: ants and lizards. Oscar destroys the fire ants’ mound in his yard, committing insect genocide. A hero emerges among the fire ants and enlists the help and friendship of the Gila monsters living in the yard. They agree to help rebuild the mound and potentially get revenge on Oscar. Eventually, they get their wish, and Oscar is taken off in an ambulance. The other enemy of both ants and lizards, the cat Virgil.

Download or read book Lizards written by Eric P. Pianka and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2003-09-24 with total page 698 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From tiny to gigantic, from drab to remarkably beautiful, from harmless to venomous, lizards are spectacular products of natural selection. This book, lavishly illustrated with color photographs, is the first comprehensive reference on lizards around the world. Accessible, scientifically up-to-date, and written with contagious enthusiasm for the subject, Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity covers species evolution, diversity, ecology, and biology. Eric R. Pianka and Laurie J. Vitt have studied and photographed members of almost all lizard families worldwide, and they bring to the book a deep knowledge based on extensive firsthand experience with the animals in their natural habitats. Part One explores lizard lifestyles, answering such questions as why lizards are active when they are, why they behave as they do, how they avoid predators, why they eat what they eat, and how they reproduce and socialize. In Part Two the authors take us on a fascinating tour of the world's manifold lizard species, beginning with iguanians, an evolutionary group that includes some of the most bizarre lizards, the true chameleons of Africa and Madagascar. We also meet the glass lizard, able to break its tail into many highly motile pieces to distract a predator from its body; lizards that can run across water; and limbless lizards, such as snakes. Part Three gives an unprecedented global view of evolutionary trends that have shaped present-day lizard communities and considers the impact of humans on their future. A definitive resource containing many entertaining anecdotes, this magnificent book opens a new window to the natural world and the evolution of life on earth.

Download or read book Lizzie Goes Wild written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Leon and Bob written by Simon James and published by Candlewick Press. This book was released on 2016-07-12 with total page 33 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Leon and his imaginary friend Bob do everything together until a new boy moves in next door.

Download or read book Lizzie Lizard s Long Jump written by Enid Richemont and published by Hachette Children's Group. This book was released on 2016-03-10 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brightly illustrated early reading books by top authors and illustrators, perfect for newly independent readers

Download or read book Behavior of Lizards written by Vincent Bels and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2019-02-06 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Key features: Presents a contemporary snapshot of the mechanisms underlying the evolution and adaptation of behavior Explores how genetics, epigenetics, development, and environment shape behavior Discusses a broad range of behavioral repertoires and responses, including those related to thermoregulatory, foraging, predatory, displaying, social and escape strategies. Examines physiological and sensory mechanisms Covers the effects of various aspects of global change on behavior, with chapters that focus on the impacts of climate change on hydroregulatory behavior and behavioral responses to the effects of habitat alteration resulting from human-mediated change and colonization by invasive species. Lizards serve as focal organisms for many of biological questions related to evolution, ecology, physiology, and morphology. They are studied at multiple spatial and temporal scales, from the individual to the community level. This book, authored by expert contributors from around the world, explores behaviors underlying the evolution and adaptation of these organisms. It covers conceptual, empirical, and methodological approaches to the understanding of the role that natural and sexual selection play in molding the behavioral traits of lizards. This thorough, illustrated reference should stimulate discussion of the conceptual and methodological approaches for studying the behavioral traits of these fascinating and highly diverse vertebrates.

Download or read book The Vivarium written by and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Abbreviations Dictionary written by Dean A. Stahl and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2018-10-08 with total page 1549 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Published in 2001: Abbreviations, nicknames, jargon, and other short forms save time, space, and effort - provided they are understood. Thousands of new and potentially confusing terms become part of the international vocabulary each year, while our communications are relayed to one another with increasing speed. PDAs link to PCs. The Net has grown into data central, shopping mall, and grocery store all rolled into one. E-mail is faster than snail mail, cell phones are faster yet - and it is all done 24/7. Longtime and widespread use of certain abbreviations, such as R.S.V.P., has made them better understood standing alone than spelled out. Certainly we are more comfortable saying DNA than deoxyribonucleic acid - but how many people today really remember what the initials stand for? The Abbreviations Dictionary, Tenth Edition gives you this and other information from Airlines of the World to the Zodiacal Signs.

Download or read book Bold Beauty written by Dandi Daley Mackall and published by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. This book was released on 2011-05-23 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Twelve-year-old Winnie Willis has a way with horses. She can gentle the wildest mare, but other parts of life don't always come as easily. Along with her dad and sister, Lizzy, Winnie is learning how to live without her mom—who was also a natural horse gentler. As Winnie teaches horses about unconditional love and blind trust, God shows Winnie that he can be trusted as well. Readers will be hooked on the series' vivid characters, whose quirky personalities fill Winnie's life with friendship and adventure. #3 Bold Beauty—Winnie's confidence begins to crumble as she faces the toughest challenge of her horse-gentling career and her first failure. Winnie slips into a web of deceit and distress until she discovers the true source of genuine confidence.

Download or read book Miranda and Caliban written by Jacqueline Carey and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2017-02-14 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The dutiful and tenderhearted Miranda loves her father but is terribly lonely. She finds solace and companionship with Caliban, the strange and feral boy Prospero has bewitched to serve him. As Prospero weaves his magic and dreams of revenge, Miranda and Caliban battle the dark, unknowable forces that bind them to the island even as the pangs of adolescence create a new awareness of each other and their doomed relationship.

Download or read book Our Animal Friends written by and published by . This book was released on 1894 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Another Stupid Spell written by Bill Ricardi and published by Bill Ricardi. This book was released on 2018-08-16 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If your own intelligence was the fuel that your magic ran on, how brightly would you dare to burn? Sorch is an abused orc mage in a world where orcs are cursed with stupidity every time they cast a spell. As a slave to the Voodoo Engine, he was fated to live a short, unrewarding life. While foraging for food one night, Sorch stumbles upon two human mages in big trouble. He saves their lives, and in return they give him an amulet that will make his life easier. Unbeknownst to the humans, their gift grants Sorch the power to break the cycle of intelligence drain and physical abuse. With the help of his friends, Sorch becomes a real mage. He leaves his swamp and embarks on a series of incredibly exciting and dangerous adventures. During his travels he encounters horrible injury, magical treasures, love, snow, university admissions tests, a plot against the Kingdom, and then of course he saves the world. Or does he? 'Another Stupid Spell' is the first book in 'Another Stupid Trilogy', the first epic fantasy series in the world of Panos. If you like first person action and adventure, hard hitting magical combat, and rooting for an unlikely hero, then Bill Ricardi's debut novel is right up your alley.

Download or read book White Space written by Ilsa J. Bick and published by Carolrhoda Lab ®. This book was released on 2014-01-01 with total page 487 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the tradition of Memento and Inception comes a thrilling and scary young adult novel about blurred reality where characters in a story find that a deadly and horrifying world exists in the space between the written lines. Emma Lindsay has problems: no parents, a crazy guardian, and all those times when she blinks away, dropping into other lives so surreal it's as if the story of her life bleeds into theirs. But one thing Emma has never doubted is that she's real. Then she writes "White Space," which turns out to be a dead ringer for part of an unfinished novel by a long-dead writer. In the novel, characters travel between different stories. When Emma blinks, she might be doing the same. Before long, she's dropped into the very story she thought she'd written. Emma meets other kids like her. They discover that they may be nothing more than characters written into being for a very specific purpose. What they must uncover is why they've been brought to this place, before someone pens their end.

Download or read book Canadian Journal of Zoology written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 634 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Environmental Physiology of the Amphibians written by Martin E. Feder and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1992-10-15 with total page 660 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Through its emphasis on recent research, its many summary tables, and its bibliography of more than 4,000 entries, this first modern, synthetic treatment of comparative amphibian environmental physiology emerges as the definitive reference for the field. Forty internationally respected experts review the primary data, examine current research trends, and identify productive avenues for future research.