Mammals of North America: Temperate and Arctic Regions [Hardcover]

Adrian Forsyth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1999

This landmark reference by award-winning science writer Adrian Forsyth is completely up-to-date with the latest scientific names and behavioral data on the wild mammals of North America. Much more than a field guide, Mammals of North America goes beyond simple identification and description, and delves into the reasons wild mammals live and act the way they do: Why are some predators highly social, while others live alone? Why must shrews no bigger than a thimble eat more than their body weight each day or face certain starvation? How can a bat pick a small insect off the surface of a leaf in total darkness? How did a squat prehistoric pig-like animal evolve into one of the world's fastest creatures, the pronghorn antelope?

Blessed with vast areas of wilderness, the United States and Canada support the largest and healthiest populations of native mammals on Earth. Even residents of urban centers are seldom more than a morning's drive from the splendors of wild-mammal life. Whether you enjoy wildlife firsthand or from the comfort of your armchair, Adrian Forsyth's Mammals of North America will prove an essential and fascinating resource.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Field guides help naturalists identify animals, but understanding their behavior is much more difficult. That's why this hefty reference work is so welcome. Mammals of North America is an excellent introduction to the behavior, ecology, and evolution of temperate and arctic mammals. Adrian Forsyth, a scientist and author of several other books on natural history, provides more than 100 species accounts, complete with excellent color photographs, range maps, basic life-history data, and concise summaries of behavior and ecology. From bighorn sheep to pygmy shrew, blue whale to black bear, Forsyth always finds something interesting to say.

But Forsyth's best writing shines in the mini-essays that occur throughout the text. What good are antlers? At less than a 10th of an ounce, how do shrews stay warm? Why do mammals produce milk? (From modified sweat glands, no less!) Why are seals such excellent divers? These topics allow him to address the big issues raised by recent advances in ecology and evolution, but always in the context of the mammal at hand, hoof, or flipper.

The geographical coverage is not truly North American. Forsyth provides accounts for only one-third of the North American species in some families. Most of the species omitted are from California, the arid Southwest, and Mexico. Is a companion volume for the arid regions of North America planned? Even with these omissions, Mammals of North America provides rich rewards for armchair naturalists as well as those who follow Louis Agassiz's advice to "study Nature, not books." --Pete Holloran

From Library Journal

This book provides information on over 150 species of mammals organized by taxonomic classification. Although the focus is on Canada and the northern United States, many species have ranges extending far to the south. Forsyth, a biologist with the W. Alton Jones Foundation and the Smithsonian Institution, furnishes the usual details about anatomy, habitat, diet, gestation, and range for each species, but the emphasis is on animal behavior--particularly why animals behave the way they do. He also covers some subjects that usually fall outside the realm of field guides, such as animal welfare, pollution, and the effects of human interaction. Whereas The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals (LJ 11/15/99) covers twice as many species, it is geared toward a more scholarly audience. Forsyth's book, with its accessible style of writing and useful index, is more easily approachable for the lay reader who may not know the scientific classification of a species. The currency of the material is questionable, however, as this work duplicates to a large extent Forsyth's earlier Mammals of the American North (1985. o.p.), the primary differences being the reversed order of the chapters and new photographs. Libraries should therefore choose the more comprehensive and authoritative Smithsonian book over Forsyth's.
-Teresa Berry, Univ. of Tennessee Libs., Knoxville
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Firefly Books (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155209409X
• ISBN-13: 978-1552094099
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 9.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,453,444 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars MAMMAL REVIEW, November 23, 1999

By 

Terry L. Reas (IN, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mammals of North America: Temperate and Arctic Regions (Hardcover)

THE BOOK MAMMALS OF NORTH AMERICA IS VERY WELL PHOTOGRAPHED. BUT AS I FOUND WHEN I CHECKED IT MORE CLOSELY IT HAS MOST OF THE AUTHORS SAME TEXT FROM AN OLDER BOOK.MAMMALS OF THE AMERICAN NORTH THAT HE HAD WRITTEN IN 1985. BUT TO BE FAIR IT IS STILL A GOOD BOOK. AND IT SHOULD BE ADDED TO ANYBODIES COLLECTION OF MAMMAL BOOKS.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars happy book buying, when looking for editions that are not in the local book store., August 18, 2008

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Sherry L. More "Sherrylyn" (Fort Howard, MD) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mammals of North America: Temperate and Arctic Regions (Paperback)

I cann't say how much I enjoy looking for books that I entend to purchase to add to my library,especially when I don't have to wait 6-10 years to find a copy for myself. It is just great.
Plus your online personal that helped me to do my shopping, she was just wonderful. I couldn't figure out why my book didn't get here. The person helping me found it in the shopping cart, I never made it to checkout. These new cornfangled machines are hard to use, especially when I am one of the last dinosaurs to start using them.
Thankyou, and I will say I am very happy. Keep up the good work especially for those customers that are in need of easy user access.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars NOT THE SAME, September 2, 2010

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H. Alexander - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mammals of North America: Temperate and Arctic Regions (Hardcover)

The book I ordered said it was in great shape and it really wasn't.There was dirt all along the pages and one of the corners was damaged. Other than that the price was fine and the speed of shipping was excellent. Next time reveal the condition.