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Title: Wildlife of Gondwana: Dinosaurs and Other Vertebrates from the Ancient Supercontinent (Life of the Past) by Pat Vickers Rich, Thomas Hewitt Rich, Francesco Coffa, Steven Morton, Patricia Vickers-Rich ISBN: 0253336430 Publisher: Indiana University Press Pub. Date: December, 1999 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $59.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.67
Rating: 4
Summary: very nice book on Australasian fossils
Comment: For those interested in photographs of fossils found mainly in Australia from the Paleozoic through the Cenozoic (along with a few from Antarctica), then this is the book for you. Crisp high quality photographs of vertebrate fossils are provided, everything from the hindlimb of Dromornis stirtoni to the top view of the skull of Leaellynasaura to numerous fish fossils. The primary focus appears to be on dinosaurs, though extinct mammals are well covered as well.
Accompanying the photographs are short articles detailing various aspects of the region's history, such as extinction of Australia's Quarternary megafauna, the floodplain faunas of the Great Southern Rift Valley of the Early Cretaceous, the role the increasing aridity of post-Miocene Australia played in evolution, and the fauna of the Gogo Reef. Longer articles deal with the basic geologic and paleontological history of Gondwana, the history of research there, and the role of Gondwana in the global context of worldwide evolution of animals. Numerous photographs of wildlife today accompany discussions of the unique biogeography of Australia and the role isolation has played in the development of the organisms there.
A beautiful coffee-table book, I hold from giving five stars for two reasons. One, the price is fairly high; though a really nice book to own, it may be out of the price range for many, or at least more than they really want to pay. Two, though the numerous photographs of fossils in the book are really high quality, I think the book could have benefitted from more artists' illustrations of the animals and their environment in life. Though a few nice ones are included, several more could have really added to the value and popular appeal of this book. Many of the extinct fauna of Gondwana are bizarre and fascinating, particularly some of the extinct marsupial megafauna, and it would have been nice to see more illustrations of how they looked in life. All in all though a really well done book.
Rating: 5
Summary: another time-trip to the past
Comment: I compared the book Walking with Dinosaurs to a time machine. Well, here's another one. Wildlife of Gondwana is composed with love and devotion to the field of Paleontology. It is a momentous feeling to relive the evolution of our planet's surface leading to Gondwana and Laurasia and stunning to watch how vertebrate species diverged to fill all the ecological niches of the ancient supercontinent Gondwana. A must for the dino lovers but also gives a fresh insight to other vertebrates that were contemporaries of the giant lizards. I hope there will once be a Wildlife of Laurasia, too.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great book
Comment: This book centers on the prehistoric animals of Australia. It starts at the Ordovician period and even includes a chapter on living animals of Australia. Also it talks about the history of paleontology on Australia. This book has a simple vocabulary and thus can be enjoyed anyone who have an interest in prehistoric life. It has many colored pictures that show fossils and recreations of animals. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in paleontology. Also I recommend the book "The flowering of Gondwana", that talks about the paleobotany of Australia.
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Title: Gaining Ground: The Origin and Early Evolution of Tetrapods by Jennifer A. Clack, James Orville Farlow ISBN: 0253340543 Publisher: Indiana University Press Pub. Date: 01 June, 2002 List Price(USD): $49.95 |
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Title: Australia's Lost World: Prehistoric Animals of Riversleigh by Michael Archer, Suzanne J. Hand, Henk Godthelp, David Attenborough ISBN: 0253339146 Publisher: Indiana University Press Pub. Date: 01 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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Title: Atlas of the Prehistoric World by Douglas Palmer ISBN: 1563318296 Publisher: Discovery Books Pub. Date: October, 1999 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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Title: Mammoths, Sabertooths, and Hominids by Jordi Agusti, Mauricio Anton ISBN: 0231116403 Publisher: Columbia University Press Pub. Date: 15 April, 2002 List Price(USD): $39.50 |
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Title: The Fossil Vertebrates of Florida by Richard C., Jr Hulbert ISBN: 0813018226 Publisher: University Press of Florida Pub. Date: 23 February, 2001 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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