http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks A list of books recently added to our list. daily 1 2006-02-10T22:27:10Z http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0738205281 Cichlid fishes are amazing creatures. In terms of sheer number of species, they are the most successful of all families of vertebrate animals, and the extent and speed with which they have evolved in some African lakes has made them the darlings of evolutionary biologists. But what really captivates scientists like George W. Barlow--not to mention thousands of aquarists the world over--is the complexity of their social lives and their devotion to family: Most species of cichlids are monogamous and many pairs share the responsibility of raising offspring. In this way, they embody the abstract ideal of the human family, with males and females remaining faithful to each other as long as the offspring need their care and protection. With warmth and wit, Barlow describes the remarkably high intelligence of these fishes, their complex mating and parenting rituals, their bizarre feeding and fighting habits, and their highly unusual adaptations. He tells us about female fish that can change their sex overnight when males are in short supply, and males that lug enormous snail shells into their territory so that their mates will have a proper home. Some cichlid parents even allow their offspring to feed from their own bodies when food is scarce. But it is the cichlids' explosive rate of speciation that makes them unique in the animal kingdom. Far more diverse than Darwin's finches, cichlids have evolved into over a thousand species. With fantastic jaws that allow them to exploit a wide array of food sources, and scores of unique feeding and mating strategies, cichlids have an uncanny ability to specialize. While many think of nature as a collection of ecological niches waiting to be filled, cichlids appear to create their own niches--and they prosper because of it. A celebration of their diversity, The Cichlid Fishes is also a marvelous exploration of how these unique animals might help resolve the age-old puzzle of how species arise and evolve. Like E.O. Wilson's ants, and Bernd Heinrich's ravens, George Barlow's cichlids will delight and enlighten naturalists for generations to come. No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-05-14T11:53:36Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0195163370 No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-05-09T17:25:00Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0520097173 This monograph presents the results of a 12-month field study of the social and ecological relations between two monkey species that occur sympatrically in many African forests. While focusing on an evolutionary analysis of their participation in mixed-species groups, the book includes extensive data on feeding, diet and ranging behavior, social behavior, vocalizations, and anti-predator behavior. Comparisons to other taxa that form mixed-species associations are also included. No publisher jmateo 2008-04-27T13:40:00Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0878930051 Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach continues the tradition of its predecessors in showing how evolutionary biologists analyze all aspects of behavior. The book is distinguished by its balanced treatment of both the underlying mechanisms and evolutionary causes of behavior. The text stresses the utility of evolutionary theory in unifying the different behavioral disciplines. Important concepts are explained by reference to key illustrative studies, which are described in sufficient detail to help students appreciate the role of the scientific process in producing research discoveries. Examples are drawn from studies of invertebrates and vertebrates. The writing style is clear and engaging: beginning students have no difficulty following the material, despite the strong conceptual orientation of the text. No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-04-14T15:55:28Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/1581500904 Written by world-renowned behaviorist Sue McDonnell, Ph.D., The Equid Ethogram provides the first comprehensive catalog of horse behaviors, providing an invaluable reference for researchers, veterinarians, students, and horse enthusiasts. This landmark work organizes horse behavior in six categories: maintenance behavior, general social communication, intermale interaction, reproductive behavior, play, and domestically shaped and aberrant behavior. The specific behaviors in each category are identified, described, and illustrated with original line drawings in a user-friendly format. The Equid Ethogram also contains more than 500 photographs of hundreds of behaviors. In addition to horses, The Equid Ethogram recognizes behaviors in zebra, donkeys, and Przewalski horses. The Equid Ethogram provides fascinating insight into how horses behave in their natural environments and their tremendous ability to conform to the demands of humans. No publisher sirot758 2008-03-28T20:44:33Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0195106245 Tomasello and Call assess the current state of our knowledge about the cognitive skills of nonhuman primates. The integrate empirical findings on the topic from the beginning of the century to the present, placing this research in theoretical perspective. No publisher sirot758 2008-03-28T19:47:34Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0815514840 First published in 1983, the second edition of this informative book remains the most comprehensive and current overview of the behavioral traits and adaptations of horses. The book integrates findings from hundreds of international researchers to provide the reader a factual synthesis of the behavior of domestic and feral horses. Building on the strengths of the first edition, the author has thoroughly updated coverage of horse ancestry, development, perception, learning, play, social behavior, behavioral manipulation, maintenance activities, and sexual behavior. In this second edition more emphasis has been given to animal husbandry and management. Additionally, the second edition includes an all-new section on ecological influences on activity patterns, habitat utilization, social behavior and reproduction. An expanded section on applied ethology provides behavioral considerations for management and insight regarding the behavioral indicators of horse health and well being. This is followed with an updated appendix listing behavioral symptoms and possible causes. The text contains numerous tables and nearly 100 illustrations and photos. No publisher sirot758 2008-03-14T15:18:43Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0878938168 No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-03-28T15:34:52Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/012369499X Recently, the 50th anniversary of the publication of Animal Behaviour has passed. To mark the occasion, a group of prominent behaviourists have written essays relevant to their fields. These essays provide a glimpse of the study of behaviour looking in all directions. History and future aside, it is imperative to broadcast this information from the perspective of the behaviourists who have helped shape both the past and the future. It is important for any field to be both retrospective and prospective: where have we been, where are we going, where are we now? These essays provide a unique personal reflection on the history of animal behaviour from John Alcock, Stuart and Jeanne Altmann, Steve Arnold, Geoff Parker, and Felicity Huntingford. Six topics are reflected on and include: The History of Animal Behavioural Research, Proximate Mechanisms, Development, Adaptation, and Animal Welfare. No publisher jmateo 2008-03-28T16:14:38Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0684843412 Here biologist Lee Dugatkin outlines four paths to cooperation shared by humans and other animals: family dynamics, reciprocal transactions (or "tit for tat"), so-called selfish teamwork, and group altruism. He draws on a wealth of examples--from babysitting among mongooses and food sharing among vampire bats to cooperation in Hutterite communities and on kibbutzim--to show not only that cooperation exists throughout the animal kingdom, but how an understanding of the natural history of altruism might foster our own best instincts toward our fellow humans. No publisher sirot758 2006-09-03T21:40:12Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0520240626 This book describes the behavioral ecology of American bison. There is also a substantial section on the ecology of the central grasslands including the behavioral ecology of a number of its vertebrates, especially, but not only, those that interact with the bison. This includes predators -- wolves, grizzly bear, badgers, black-footed ferrets and coyotes -- but also other herbivores -- e.g prairie dogs and pronghorn. There is also a description of the ecology of some of the diseases and parasites that afflict bison -- anthrax, brucellosis, deer ticks. The book also describes the current understanding of the impact of humans on bison, especially their destruction of the population and conservation. Unlike most books on bison this book does not address the religious and cultural significance of bison for Native Americans, though it does touch on the bison's economic significance. My book discusses humans primarily in terms of their impact on the bison. My book is too narrow be a suitable text for a course in animal behavior, but could be useful as a text or supplementary text in an introductory or survey course on wildlife ecology, conservation biology or an upper division course in animal behavior. No publisher sirot758 2008-03-28T20:00:17Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0816513996 No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-03-28T15:49:19Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0521586569 No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-03-28T15:57:46Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/156331925X In this unforgettable collection of stories, more than fifty experts on animals ranging from great apes to guppies present compelling evidence that, when faced with such circumstances as losing a child; confronting an enemy; choosing a mate; or being tricked, chastised, challenged, played with, or picked on; many animals do seem to have an emotional response, one whose underpinnings may be strikingly similar to our own. Whats more, these familiar feelings occur even in such unlikely animals as birds, reptiles, and fish. No publisher sdduncan_manager 2008-03-28T15:55:08Z Amazon Item http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSBooks/abs-books/0226086992 The running speed of pronghorn is exceeded only by that of cheetahs. In this tightly written account of his 14 year study of North America's fastest mammal, Byers first reveals the reason for such speed. For most of their evolutionary history over the past four million years, pronghorn shared a grassland habitat with many dangerous predators, including fleet hyenas, a large lion, and at least two species of cheetahs. Then, at the end Pleistocene extinctions 10,000 years ago, most mammals of the North American savanna fauna, including all of the truly dangerous predators, disappeared. Pronghorn were fortunate survivors, and inherited a world essentially free of danger. In the ensuing 5,000 generations, they changed little. Byers shows that much of pronghorn social behavior and life history, like anatomy and consequent running speed, are designed for life with those former dangerous predators. Effects of selection imposed by predators lingers today in patterns of maternal behavior, sex allocation, grouping tendencies, competition for social rank, and selection of mates by females. The book concludes with a discussion of why pronghorn should not be considered as a special case. Byers argues that it is reasonable to expect the retention of formerly adaptive traits when selection is relaxed, especially when, as is so for pronghorn and other North American fauna, relaxation began such a short time ago. He suggests reform in favor of a more pluralistic approach to analysis of behavioral adaptation. This book is the most complete account to date of the social behavior and life history of this remarkable North American species. Byers' personal writing style and lucid description of behavior and of field work blend with careful presentation of data to produce an easily read book that will find an enthusiastic readership among evolutionary biologists, wildlife managers, animal behaviorists and anyone interested in the natural lives of animals. No publisher sirot758 2008-03-29T02:58:15Z Amazon Item