Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach [Hardcover]

John Alcock (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0878930116 | ISBN-13: 978-0878930111 | Publication Date: January 2001 | Edition: 7 Sub

It is distinguished by its balanced treatment of both the underlying mechanisms and evolutionary causes of behaviour, and stresses the utility of evolutionary theory in unifying the different behavioural disciplines. Important concepts are explained by reference to key illustrative studies, which are described in sufficient detail to help students appreciate the role of the scientific process in producing research discoveries. Examples are drawn evenly from studies of invertebrates and vertebrates, and are supported by nearly 1300 reference citations. The writing style is clear: beginning students should have no difficulty following the material, despite the strong conceptual orientation of the text.

Editorial Reviews

From Book News

New edition of a standard text, conceptual in orientation, yet accessible to beginning students, and aggressive in its emphasis on theory and hypothesis-testing as central to science. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Review

This ninth edition is both comfortably familiar and thoroughly updated. The order and titles of the 14 chapters are the same ... Within this structure, however, the book is rewritten throughout with virtually every paragraph altered. The reference list has grown by nearly 300, and seemingly every citation has been considered for replacement. Similarly, clearly serviceable pictures and figures have often been replaced by even better ones. ... What unites all editions of this work is Alcock's ability to impart the excitement of doing science. ... this textbook remains unmatched in conveying that sense to its readers. I will use this new edition, and look forward to future versions for as long as John Alcock is excited about producing them. The excitement is contagious. --Peter A. Bednekoff, The Quarterly Review of Biology

... Alcock's Animal Behavior continues to be one of the most popular textbooks used in animal behavior courses, and for good reason. The writing is easy to read and understand, it is packed with detailed examples, figures, and illustrations (all complete with full bibliographic information), and it presents a well-balanced view of proximate and ultimate causes of behavior, both of vertebrates and invertebrates. In addition, for the professor of the course, the ancillaries are useful and diverse ... It is in general a highly enjoyable book to read, both for those who know the field well and for those just being introduced to the wonders of animal behavior. --Miles Engell, Integrative and Comparative Biology --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 543 pages
• Publisher: Sinauer Associates; 7 Sub edition (January 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878930116
• ISBN-13: 978-0878930111
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #181,830 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #60 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > Animal Behavior & Communication
  • #83 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Evolution > Organic

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Ok. I take it back (send it back), December 1, 2001

By 

John Anderson (Bar Harbor, ME USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach (Hardcover)

Every time I teach Animal Behaviour I swear that I am going to change texts "the next time" -and every time UNTIL NOW my students have said that they REALLY liked Alcock, well, the latest edition changes all that. As other reviewers have noted (and for reasons that escape me) Alcock has allowed his publisher to "dumb down" the text into a bland "pretty face" that turned students off in droves. As I moved through each chapter I kept thinking "How could someone as smart & interesting as Alcock make so many cool subjects so BORING?" Previous editions convince me that it ain't him, so it must be the publisher. Margins are huge, more and more gratuitous "illustrations" clutter up the text & break one's stream of thought, and by mid-term I essentially threw up my hands, apologized to the class & went to using the original primary sources with the book as a marginal reference for those that got lost. If you have a huge lecture course full of unimaginative students who want to take one & one only Behaviour course so that they can say that they have "done Behaviour" then this text is probably perfect for you, otherwise I would suggest haunting used book shops for past editions or going straight to the literature. the whole thing reminds me of "New Coke" -a marketing scheme that ignored its market. Alcock is an excellent scholar and in the past his book has been a great source of original material which I have encouraged my students to have on their shelves as a reference source,but this is a shame.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Going downhill, May 14, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach (Hardcover)

I used this book as a student and enjoyed it then. Years later, as a professor, I decided to switch from Krebs and Davies' text to this one for the greater number of examples. However, the lack of theoretical underpinning makes this book more of a fun read than an educational one. My students often thought "wow, thats cool" without understanding the significance. I also found the avoidance of mathematical models troubling. This is a trend I have seen in the most recent Ricklefs' Ecology text as well (which I no longer use). Beautiful photos, easy to read, lots of examples, but much too watered down. I would give this book to my parents to read to understand animal behavior, but I wont use it for a college text again.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Step backwards, November 24, 2001

By 

R.J. Rowe (Townsville, Q Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach (Hardcover)

Alcock's 'Animal behavior: an evolutionary approach' editions 1 through 6 have come to dominate the field. Edition 7 (without the 'evolutionary approach' on the cover) is a step backwards. The page size is larger with much white space and the pictures have been artistically coloured. Some pictures are there for entertainment and are biologically wrong (flip) p372 the asymmetric pseudoscorpion with a leg and a pedipalp segment missing. There is significantly less content (at least 20% less on the sample of pages I measured). The language is simpler, sometimes at a cost in precision. Some explanations have become 'textbook glib' where attention could/should have been drawn to the fragility of evidence (e.g. it's about time someone pointed out the influence of a single point on Baker & Bellis' human mate guarding results (p476 Fig 15 this edition)) other examples p344 - the suicidal male redback spider - fails to consider mating strategies in other closely related Latrodectus sp. and the observation the fatal flip breaks the embolus, sealing the female's reproductive tract. etc., etc.
The redesign, pretty pictures and reduction in content seems to come at the expense of a marked price hike.
In content the book is now closer to Krebs & Davies 'An introduction to behavioural ecology' which needs to be considered as an alternative for textbook adoption.
In favour of the new style is that a sample of students preferred this book on appearance.