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Mammals : a very short introduction

Relative newcomers within the story of evolution, mammals are hugely successful and have colonized land, water and air. Tom Kemp discusses the great diversity of mammalian species, and looks at how their very disparate characteristics, physiologies and behaviours are all largely driven by one uniting factor: endothermy, or warm-bloodedness.From a modest beginning in the form of a little shrew-like, nocturnal, insect eating ancestor that lived 200 million years ago, mammals evolved into the huge variety of different kinds of animals we see today. Many species are still small, and follow the lifestyle of the ancestor, but others have adapted to become large grazers and browsers, like the antelopes, cattle, rhinos, and elephants, or the lions, hyaenas, and wolves that prey upon them. Yet others evolved to be specialist termite eaters able to dig into the hardest mounds, or tunnel creating burrowers, and a few took to the skies as gliders and the bats. Many live partly in the water, such as otters, beavers, and hippos, while whales and dugongs remain permanently in the seas, incapable of ever emerging onto land. In this Very Short Introduction T. S. Kemp explains how it is a tenfold increase in metabolic rate - endothermy or <"warm-bloodedness>" - that lies behind the high levels of activity, and the relatively huge brain associated with complex, adaptable behaviour that epitomizes mammals. He describes the remarkable fossil record, revealing how and when the mammals gained their characteristics, and the tortuous course of their subsequent evolution, during which many bizarre forms such as sabre-toothed cats, and 30-tonne, 6-m high browsers arose and disappeared. Describing the wonderful adaptations that mammals evolved to suit their varied modes of life, he also looks at those of the mainly arboreal primates that culminated ultimately in Homo sapiens. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Online Very Short Introductions

Comparative physiology, primitive mammals

Comparative Physiology: Primitive Mammals attempts to dispel the widely held notion that 'primitive' animals are less advanced or less complex than the 'non-primitive'. The term 'primitive', or more accurately 'conservative', refers to the fact that these animals have retained many of the characteristics of their evolutionary ancestors. Because they have been able to adapt to a variety of environmental conditions, these so-called primitive animals should be considered highly successful evolutionary solutions. The papers contained in this volume are the result of the Fourth International Conference on Comparative Physiology held at Crans-sur-Sierre in 1978. The conference, which was sponsored by the Interunion Commission on Comparative Physiology representing the International Unions of Biological Sciences, Physiological Sciences, and Pure and Applied Biophysics, brought together scientists from various fields to discuss the widely scattered information on primitive mammals from the perspective of comparative physiology.

Reproductive physiology of mammals : from farm to field and beyond

"Reproductive Physiology of Mammals: From Farm to Field and Beyond" explores the fundamental principles of mammalian reproductive biology in the context of a society that values the management of the reproductive activity of human and nonhuman animals. The format of the book is compatible with traditional approaches to teaching courses in reproductive physiology, but emphasizes basic biological principles and comparative analyses of reproductive physiology. This departure from tradition is intended to accommodate students' growing interests in companion and wild animals and provide expertise that allows students to pursue careers that require literacy in basic science.

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