The World's Most Spectacular Reptiles & Amphibians [Hardcover]

William W. Lamar (Author), Pete Carmichael (Photographer), Gail Shumway (Photographer)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Lamar celebrates beautiful and unusual reptiles and amphibians in this stunning collection of photographs. The author, an associate herpetologist at both the University of Kansas Museum of Natural History and the National Serpentarium in San Jose, Costa Rica, has studied reptiles and amphibians in Central and South America for many years. A page overview of each group (turtles and tortoises, crocodiles, lizards, snakes, salamanders and newts, caecilians, and frogs) is followed by close-up color photographs showing the animals' vivid colors, beautiful patterns, or unusual forms. A paragraph including common and scientific names, adult size, habitat, range, diet, reproduction, and interesting facts accompanies each photograph. While The Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians (1986), edited by Tim R. Halliday and Kraig Adler, provides a more detailed look at reptile and amphibian biology and natural history, this visual treat is recommended for public libraries for its spectacular photographs.?Sue O'Brien, Downers Grove P.L., Ill.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: World Pubns (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884942075
• ISBN-13: 978-1884942075
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,139,971 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #81 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > Amphibians

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing photos of many rare amimals, July 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The World's Most Spectacular Reptiles & Amphibians (Hardcover)

This book, while not very wordy and informative in the text, is what I believe to be the best pictorial on the many varieties of reptiles and amphibians. Most of the pictures say more than words ever could. The photos deal with animals such as the red eyed tree frog, which are on half the shirts and coffee mugs known to man, to extremely rare and odd animals such as the Borneo earless lizard, caiman lizard, Bismarck ringed python, spiny-headed treefrog, and even golden toads in amplexus. The pictures are clear, crisp, and big, so you get the detail of the colors and shapes gracing the many animals in this book. I am so glad that there are finally pictures of the more obscure reptiles and amphibians so there is no more squinting at bad black and white photos in a dictionary. This book is a must for the Herp enthusiast, no matter how amateur of professional.

5.0 out of 5 stars The World's Most Spectaculr Reptiles & Amphibians, August 16, 2009

By 

Catherine Shipp - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The World's Most Spectacular Reptiles & Amphibians (Hardcover)

A most outstanding book with awesome color pictures. I understand that this author is a renowned authority on poisonous snakes, too. I would recommend this for anyone interested in biology.

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful pictures are marred with bad editing., March 15, 1998

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The World's Most Spectacular Reptiles & Amphibians (Hardcover)

This book certainly does have spectacular pictures. However, this book lacks the style or personality that could come from one of the premier field herpetoligists of our time. William Lamar has a wealth of experiences and anecdotes that could certainly enhance the character of this book. Instead, the limited text reads as if it could have been written by anyone with a knowledge about reptiles and amphibians. This could have been overlooked and taken for a picture book with some information. Unfortunately the editing for the text is terrible. The spelling and grammatical errors are numerous. The first error presents itself by the third sentence of the inside cover jacket! Although this is a first edition print I find this very distracting and takes much away from the professionalism and credibility of this book. If you are looking for stunning photographs this book is a 10. However, if you want unique information or stories from those that have 'been there' and with credible editing then I have to give it a 2.