Dogs: Their Fossil Relatives and Evolutionary History (Hardcover)

by Professor Xiaoming Wang (Author), Professor Richard H. Tedford (Author), Mauricio Anton (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: reconstructed life appearance, canid evolution, early borophagines, North America, South America, Old World (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An easy-to-read text, accompanied by Anton's marvelous illustrations... Recommended." -- Choice

Review

" Dogs: Their Fossil Relatives and Evolutionary History is an extremely valuable and interesting book with text and illustrations by the best in the business. The volume is an original contribution to the field, bringing together all known information about canid evolution into one readily accessible text." -- Lars Werdelin, Swedish Museum of Natural History

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press; 1 edition (June 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231135289
• ISBN-13: 978-0231135283
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 6.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,125 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #3 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > Mammals
  #14 in	Books > Science > Biological Sciences > Paleontology
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A long-awaited work; a great read for both research and leisure, July 13, 2008

By	J. Tseng "Zhijie" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book encompasses everything that inspired me to pursue paleontological research...the meticulous manner in which the authors document the evolutionary history of dogs, and the unparalleled illustrations that bring those concepts and species to life. The paleontologists who wrote this book are authorities in their fields, and are much respected for the quality of their work. The price tag for the book is a huge understatement of its value. Be glad you are getting such a bargain for a priceless work, just short of picking the brains of the authors themselves!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A bit technical, but reading it was worth the effort, July 27, 2008

By	Daniel Phelps ([e-mail] Lexington, KY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Dogs and their kin have an extensive fossil record, especially in North America. The authors have recently published three extensive technical monographs on fossil dogs, wolves, coyotes, foxes, etc. based on the unbelievably huge collections at the American Museum of Natural History and elsewhere. This book is essentially a popularization of the technical work, although this volume can be a bit technical in places.

The authors cover the taxonomy of modern Canidae, the origin of carnivores, dogs, and numerous doglike mammals, anatomy, hunting and social activity (not only of modern dogs, but what can be interpreted from fossils), how the evolution of dogs is related to the last 40 million years of climate change, the migration of dogs from North American into the Old World, and a short chapter on domestic dogs.

Included as appendices are listings of all 200 plus fossil and living Canidae species and an evolutionary tree base on the author's research.
The artwork by Antön is wonderfully done with his sketches rivaling his almost photographic looking color paintings in quality. Antön previously has illustrated other books on vertebrate paleontology, including The Big Cats and their Fossil Relatives.

Almost anyone who is interested in dogs and/or vertebrate paleontology should read this book. Natural History magazine has a short non-technical summary article by the authors in July-August '08 issue if you want a good preview. Dr. Wang has a wonderful website with links to much of his research and a pdf of the Natural History article.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bark's as good as Bite!, July 18, 2008

By	J. de Zwart - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is a great follow-up to The Big Cats and Their Fossil Relatives and like the forementioned it doesn't disappoint! Well researched, well written and accompanied by outstanding illustrations (Mauricio Anton really displays his talents as a reconstructive artist), this book is a treasure to anyone interested in carnivoran evolution. The list of pertinent reference books relating to mammalian evolution is an added bonus. I just wish it could go into more depth on many of the interesting species it reveals to us. A great introduction to canid evolution, you can't go wrong with this one!