Mammals: Primates Insect-Eaters and Baleen Whales [antikvár]

INTRODUCTION The Encyclopedia of the Animal World surveys the main groups and species of animals alive today. Written by a team of specialists, it includes the most current information and the newest ideas on animal behaviour and survival. The Encyclopedia looks at how the shape and form of an animal reflect its life-style - the ways in which a creature's size, colour, feeding methods and defences have all evolved in relationship to a particular diet, climate and habitat. Discussed also are the ways in which human activities often disrupt namral ecosystems and threaten tlie survival of many species. In this Encyclopedia the animals are grouped on the basis of their body structure and their evolution from common ancestors. Thus, diere are single volumes or groups of volumes on mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, fish, insects and so on. Within these major categories, the animals are grouped according to their feeding habits or general hfe-styles. Because there is so much information on the animals in two of these major categories, there are four volumes devoted to mammals (The Small Plant-Eaters; The Hunters; The Large Plant-Eaters; Primates, Insect-Eaters and Baleen Whales) and three to birds (Waterbirds; Aerial Hunters and Flightless Birds; Plant- and Seed-Eaters). This volume. Mammals - Primates, Insect-Eaters and Baleen Whales, includes entries on monkeys and apes, bats, ediidnas, the platypus and Baleen whales. Together they nimiber some 1,550 species. For the most part, they fall into two groups: generalists (those who eat a variety of foods, both plant and animal) and specialists (those whose diet consists only of insects or other small animals that occur in great abundance). The primates - the lemurs, tarsiers, bush babies, monkeys and apes - are as a group generalists and are our closest relatives. Some form highly sopliisticated social relationships, and many are famous for their agility, intelligence and playfU behaviour. Many mammals eat insects or other small creaOires as a main part of their diet. Some - the shrews, moles and hedgehogs - belong to a specialized group that scientists call the insectivores. But this volume also includes unrelated insect-eating animals such as bats, anteaters and armadillos. Even the Baleen whales (Grey whale, rorquals) are included - not because they eat insects, of course, but because they are adapted to eating small creatures, which they scoop up from the sea in great numbers in their huge mouths. (The other group of whales - the Toothed whales - are dealt with in Volume 2 -The Hunters). Each article in this Encyclopedia is devoted to an individual species or group of closely related species. The text starts with a short scene-setting story that highlights one or more of the animal's unique features. It then continues with details of the most interesting aspects of the animal's physical features and abilities, diet and feeding behaviour, and general life-style. It also covers conservation and the animal's relationships with people. A fact panel provides easy reference to the main features of distribution (natural, not introductions to other areas by humans), habitat, diet, size, colour, pregnancy and birth, and lifespan. (An explanation of the colour coded symbols is given on page 2 of the book.) The panel also includes a Ust of the conmion and scientific (Latin) names of species mentioned in the main text and photo captions. For species illustrated in major artwork panels but not described elsewhere, the names are given in the caption accompanying the artwork. In such illustrations, all animals are shown to scale; actual dimensions may be found in the text. To help the reader appreciate the size of the animals, in the upper right part of the page at the beginning of an article are scale drawings comparing the size of the species with that of a human being (or of a human foot). Many species of animal are threatened with extinction as a result ofhuman activities. In this Encyclopedia the following terms are used to show the status of a species as defined by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources: Endangered - in danger of extinction unless their habitat is no longer destroyed and they are not hunted by people. Vulnerable - likely to become endangered in the near fiiture. Rare - exist in small numbers but neither endangered nor vulnerable at present. A glossary provides definitions of technical terms used in the book. A common name and scientific (Latin) name index provide easy access to text and illustrations. Photo opposite: An armadillo, out at night foraging for insects, fallen finits and fiingi.