Living fossils are survivors from the dawn of life on earth. They have survived mass extinction, escaped the enemies that killed off other animals, and avoided evolution to live for tens and even hundreds of millions of years virtually unchanged. When the dinosaurs perished, the "living fossils" remained--and even thrived. The award-winning author of Hiding Out, Tentacles, and Chameleons documents these resilient creatures, from the exotic to the familiar, including the Komodo dragon, crocodile, alligator, horseshoe crab, nautilus, and the ubiquitous cockroach. With dazzling photographs, detailed illustrations comparing the creatures' ancient habitats, and awesome facts, Living Fossils unravels some of the mysteries behind nature's longest running success stories.
| ||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6. Although the animals in this book can be found in the fossil record, they are also very much alive today. Martin explores the lives and evolution of creatures that, unlike dinosaurs, trilobites, and pterosaurs, didn't become extinct, but managed to adapt to the changing conditions on Earth over many millions of years. Included are the horseshoe crab, the nautilus, the coelacanth, the Komodo dragon, the crocodilians, and the cockroach. Readers learn about the life cycles of these creatures and the traits that may have helped them survive the cataclysmic events that destroyed so many other living things. The nautilus, for example, may have survived the event (comet or asteroid) that destroyed the dinosaurs because they laid their eggs deep in the ocean. Though the adult nautilus were toasted by the extreme temperatures, the next generation survived. The clear, large, full-color photos are great. Less polished are the paintings of animals that coexisted with the survivors, but are now extinct. Though the creatures in them are labeled, little else is included about them in the text, which is frustrating because many of them look intriguing. Overall, there's good information here, especially the clues about what made these animals such successful life-forms.?Cathryn A. Camper, Minneapolis Public Library
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Gr. 4-7. Millions of years and countless earth changes often spell the demise of many species of animals. However, some highly successful creatures have survived practically untouched by evolution. These "living fossils," such as the Komodo dragon and the cockroach, defy all the odds and remain on the earth to thrive--and amaze us. Using a simple text, captioned drawings, and excellent photographs, Martin introduces seven of nature's oddest survivors, including the cold-water coelacanth, believed to be extinct until 1938. The thought-provoking facts, so deftly presented, engender new respect for nature and its hardiest survivors. Denia Hester
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
James Martin has written and photographed professionally since 1989 with articles and photographs appearing in Sports Illustrated, Summit, Smithsonian, Outside, Backpacker, Climbing, Outdoor and Travel Photography, Boys' Life, Ranger Rick, Outdoor Photographer, Destination, Blue, Audubon, and Rock & Ice.
He wrote Digital Photography Outdoors, 2nd edition (Mountaineer Books). He recently completed Planet Ice, a survey of ice that elucidates the relationship between climate and ice, and the action of ice on the landscape. In the course of shooting he hiked to Everest Base Camp, soloed across the Andes, climbed Kilimanjaro and the mountains of the moon, visited Greenland twice, and led trips to Antarctica. See www.planeticebook.com.
He wrote Masters of Disguise: the natural history of chameleons, the first comprehensive book on chameleons in English. Sasquatch Press published a series of his coffee table books on the mountains of the West, including The North Cascades Crest, Mount Rainier, and Sierra. Extreme Alpinism (Mountaineer Press), written and photographed with Mark Twight, concerns techniques for climbing and surviving the most difficult mountains. The book won the Outdoor Retailer Award and the Banff Mountain Festival Award in 1999.
He has written books for children on natural history, including Hiding Out: camouflage in the wild and Dragons in the Trees (both published by Crown), each declared an Outstanding Science Trade Book by the National Science Teacher's Association and distinguished as Selectors' Choices. They were also Booklist Editor's Choices, American Library Association Best Book selections, and ALA Notable Books for Children. Dragons in the Trees was named the 1992 Outstanding Nature Book for children by the John Burroughs Association and a recommended book for children by the Children's Literature Center of the Library of Congress. Crown published Living Fossils and Frogs in 1997.
Getty Images represents his photography. His travels led him to Africa, Madagascar, Antarctica, Europe, Borneo, Indonesia, and S.E. Asia. He leads photography tours around the world for Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris. He currently acts as executive director of Art Wolfe Inc. Over the last three decades he has hiked thousands of miles and climbed extensively.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
This book truly brings history to life!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Living Fossils (Hardcover)
I teach grades 1-3, and this book is perfect for a unit we do on the "Timeline of Life" (evolution). The topic really captures the children's imaginations, and this book helps to feed their interest as well as relate the past to familiar animals. The author helps children realize that the existence of humans is brief in relationship to survivors such as the horseshoe crab, the cockroach, the crocodile and the fascinating Komodo dragon. The book prompts discussions about what it is that makes these creatures such survivors and whether we, as humans, have the hardiness to survive as long. The photographs are wonderful. They truly bring history to life!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
WHY SOME CREATURES SURVIVED,
This review is from: Living Fossils (Hardcover)
Photographs and artwork are combined to present animals who lived on this planet millions of years ago and still exist today. How did some creatures flourish while others became extinct? Why were they untouched by evolution? These are only some of the mysteries explored in Living Fossils/Animals That Have Withstood The Test Of Time by James Martin.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Living Fossils,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Living Fossils (Hardcover)
My son loved this book. He is really into fossils. You if want to learn about fossils than I suggest you buy this book.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
