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Bezig met laden... Giants of the Lost World: Dinosaurs and Other Extinct Monsters of South Americadoor Donald R. Prothero
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Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek. Prothero-irreverence love ... "Sloths and armadillos and their kin are the two most familiar families of the Xenartha. The third are the anteaters, which are place in the group Vermilingua, which means "worm tongue" in Latin. (There is no known connection to the villainous Grima Wormtongue in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings.)" And the section on the mammals with evergrowing incisors is, of course, titled "Rodents of Unusual Size" ;-) Overall a nice little book not deep or overly detailed but one of those informative, engaging (and fun) overviews that puts the general evolution of known large South American faunas, ranging from early protomammals of Gondwana to recent mammals, birds, and reptiles, in ecological and historical perspective and serves as a guide to things to find out more about (lots of critters that don't often get a mention in the more-usually-North America/Euro-centric-with-an-occasional-dash-of-Asia palaeontology books). South American dinosaurs are included, of course, but kept in perspective (and a single chapter) as they existed for only a small percentage of the timeline covered. Now I have a strong urge to grab my copy of Conan Doyle's "The Lost World" to re-read it ... geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
More than a hundred years ago, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a novel called The Lost Worldwith the exciting premise that dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasts still ruled in South America. Little did Conan Doyle know, there were terrifying monsters in South America--they just happened to be extinct. In fact, South America has an incredible history as a land where many strange creatures evolved and died out. In his book Giants of the Lost World- Dinosaurs and Other Extinct Monsters of South America, Donald R. Prothero uncovers the real science and history behind this fascinating story. The largest animal ever discovered was the huge sauropod dinosaur Argentinosaurus, which was about 130 feet long and weighed up to 100 tons. The carnivorous predator Giganotosaurusweighed in at more than 8 tons and measured more than 47 feet long, dwarfing the T. rexin comparison. Gigantic anacondas broke reptile records; possums evolved into huge saber-toothed predators; and ground sloths grew larger than elephants in this strange, unknown land. Prothero presents the scientific details about each of these prehistoric beasts, provides a picture of the ancient landscapes they once roamed, and includes the stories of the individuals who first discovered their fossils for a captivating account of a lost world that is stranger than fiction. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)567.9098Natural sciences and mathematics Fossils & prehistoric life Fossil cold-blooded vertebrates Reptilia DinosaursLC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
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I liked the explanation of the fossil record on both sides of the K/T boundary in South America and I was particularly interested in the early period just after the extinction event and the development of founding animal populations. I didn't realize predatory birds were at the top of the food chain for millions of years in S. America.
The only quibble I have with the book are the figures, charts and photographs. Reading the reviews, I saw that I am not the only reader who had trouble reading the extremely tiny font underneath the photographs. It is microscopic to the point I almost wanted to get out a magnifying glass. My vision isn't THAT bad! ( )