Nyhet

The Story of the Mammals in 25 Discoveries

Amazing Fossils and the People Who Found Them

AvDonald R. Prothero

Inbunden, Engelska, 2026

649 kr

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Beskrivning

How do we know that mammals lived alongside the dinosaurs? What proves that whales evolved from four-legged land animals and are related to hippos? Did hunting by humans or climate change cause the extinction of mammoths? How far back would we need to go to see that horses were once almost identical to tapirs and rhinos?Donald R. Prothero takes readers on a journey through the history of mammals, opening a window onto the worlds of some of the most incredible and peculiar animals that ever lived. He tells the dramatic stories of fossil findings and the paleontologists who unraveled them, showing how scientific ingenuity advanced our knowledge of both ancient and present-day mammals. Alongside iconic animals like mastodons, dire wolves, and sabertoothed cats, Prothero introduces readers to a vast range of little-known prehistoric creatures. Some resemble their living relatives, but with a twist: short-necked giraffes, camels without humps, rhinos without horns, bear-sized beavers. Others are like nothing alive today, such as chalicotheres, which look like a cross between a horse and gorilla but with claws, and uintatheres, which one scientist compared to “giant horned bunnies.” Lively and informative, The Story of the Mammals in 25 Discoveries highlights the wonder, beauty, and strangeness of the creatures that have shared our world.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2026-08-18
Mått:152 x 229 x undefined mm
Format:Inbunden
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:544
Förlag:Columbia University Press
ISBN:9780231218306

Utforska kategorier

Paleontologi inom Naturvetenskap och teknik
Däggdjur inom Djur och Natur
Böcker om stenar och mineraler inom Djur och Natur

Mer om författaren

Donald R. Prothero is a paleontology and geology researcher, teacher, and author. He is adjunct professor of geological sciences at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and research associate in vertebrate paleontology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. His Columbia University Press books include The Story of Earth’s Climate in 25 Discoveries: How Scientists Found the Connections Between Climate and Life (2024) and The Story of Evolution in 25 Discoveries: The Evidence and the People Who Found It (2020).

Recensioner i media

Of all Prothero’s books, this one is arguably the most fun and mind-broadening. He treats a range of fossil mammals—some familiar, others mysterious—and his accounts of their discoveries are refreshing and invite exploration. A great book for students of paleontology and for all curious minds.

Innehållsförteckning

Preface1. Mammut: The “Great Incognitum”—Mastodons and Their Relatives2. Mammuthus: Mammoths—Monsters of the Ice Ages3. Megatherium: Jefferson’s “Lion”—Giant Ground Sloths4. Amphitherium: Mammals from the Age of Dinosaurs5. Diprotodon: Platypus, Giant Kangaroos, and Wombats—Australia’s Curious Mammals6. Toxodon: Darwin’s Mysterious Mammal7. Uintatherium: Six-Horned Saber-Tooths and the “Bone Wars”8. Hyracotherium: The “Hyrax Beast”—The Evolution of Horses9. Megacerops: “Thunder Beasts”—The Brontotheres10. Chalicotherium and Megatapirus: Hoofed Mammals with Claws and Trunks11. Coelodonta: Woolly Rhinos—and Rhinos Without Horns12. Daeodon: “Hell Pigs”—The Entelodonts13. Poebrotherium: Camels Without Humps14. Samotherium: Giraffes with Short Necks15. Bison Latifrons: Where the Buffalo Roam 16. Megaloceros: Where the Deer and the Antelope Play17. Basilosaurus: From Land to Water I—The Evolution of Whales18. Pezosiren: From Land to Water II—The Evolution of Sirenians19. Enaliarctos: From Land to Water III—The Evolution of Pinnipeds20. Ursus spelaeus: Clan of the Cave Bear21. Aenocyon dirus: The Direst Wolf22. Smilodon: Saber-Toothed Killers23. Castoroides: Rodents of Unusual Size24. Oreopithecus and Ramapithecus: Apes of Confusion25. Australopithecus: The Ape’s ReflectionIndex