referencebooks (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} referencebooks) wrote,@ 2006-03-02 11:15:00 |
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| Entry tags: | biology, environmental studies |
Endangered Animals: A Reference Guide to Conflicting Issues
Endangered Animals: A Reference Guide to Conflicting Issues
Edited by Richard P. Reading and Brian Miller.
Published by Greenwood Press, 2000.
This is a 6" by 9" hardbound book running to 383 pages including the bibliography, index and contributor list, plus an introduction.
The introduction, after discussing the "present extinction spasm" in general terms, says:
Case studies provide in-depth analyses rich with lessons for learning and for improving performance. The 49 case studies presented in this book demonstrate the causes and context of endangerment for a wide variety of animals, mostly vertebrates. A diversity of case material is included from a range of perspectives. Although there is a predominance of U.S. authors and case studies, the book includes contributors from 16 nations and addresses species inhabiting over 20 countries (and several oceans) and a wide variety of ecological systems on every continent except Antarctica.
Each case study begins with a general description of the animal, a discussion of its natural history, a discussion of conflicting issues (debate), and a section discussing its future.
This book is far from a catalog of endangered species and shouldn't be used as one. While the number of case studies included make it potentially useful as a reference book, the real value of it is as a monograph that provides insight into the situation of endangered species.
