The Terrestrial Eocene-Oligocene Transition in North America [Hardcover]

Donald R. Prothero (Editor), Robert J. Emry (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521433878 | ISBN-13: 978-0521433877 | Publication Date: June 13, 1996

The transition from the Eocene to the Oligocene epoch, occurring approximately 47 to 30 million years ago, was the most dramatic episode of climatic and biotic change since the demise of the dinosaurs. The mild tropical climates of the Paleocene and early Eocene were replaced by modern climatic conditions and extremes, including glacial ice in Antarctica. The first part of this book summarizes the latest information in the dating and correlation of the strata of late middle Eocene through early Oligocene age in North America. The second part reviews almost all the important terrestrial reptiles and mammals found near the Eocene-Oligocene boundary, in the White River Chronofauna--from the turtles, snakes and lizards to the common rodents, carnivores, oreodonts and deer of the Badlands. This is the first comprehensive treatment of these topics in over sixty years, and will be invaluable to vertebrate paleontologists, geologists, mammalogists and evolutionary biologists.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...this book is an important resource for specialists." E. Delson, Choice

Book Description

The transition from the Eocene to the Oligocene epochs, from approximately 47 to 30 million years ago, was the most dramatic episode of climatic and biotic change since the demise of the dinosaurs. The first part of the book summarizes the latest information in dating and correlation of the strata of late middle Eocene through early Oligocene age in North America. The second part reviews almost all the important terrestrial reptiles and mammals found near the Eocene-Oligocene boundary. This is the first comprehensive treatment of these rocks and fossils in over sixty years.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 704 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (June 13, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521433878
• ISBN-13: 978-0521433877
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,139,890 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #26 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Paleontology > Paleobiology
  • #67 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Earth Sciences > Geology > Historical

More About the Author

Donald R. Prothero is Professor of Geology at Occidental College in Los Angeles, and Lecturer in Geobiology at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He earned M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in geological sciences from Columbia University in 1982, and a B.A. in geology and biology (highest honors, Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of California, Riverside. He is currently the author, co-author, editor, or co-editor of 25 books and over 200 scientific papers, including five leading geology textbooks and three trade books as well as edited symposium volumes and other technical works. He is on the editorial board of Skeptic magazine, and in the past has served as an associate or technical editor for Geology, Paleobiology and Journal of Paleontology. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America, the Paleontological Society, and the Linnaean Society of London, and has also received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Science Foundation. He has served as the Vice President of the Pacific Section of SEPM (Society of Sedimentary Geology), and five years as the Program Chair for the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. In 1991, he received the Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society for the outstanding paleontologist under the age of 40. He has also been featured on several television documentaries, including episodes of Paleoworld (BBC), Prehistoric Monsters Revealed (History Channel), Entelodon and Hyaenodon (National Geographic Channel) and Walking with Prehistoric Beasts (BBC).