Extinct Animals: An Encyclopedia of Species that Have Disappeared during Human History

(Hardback)

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Everyone is familiar with the dodo and the wooly mammoth, but how many people have heard of the scimitar cat and the Falkland Island fox Extinct Animals portrays over 60 remarkable animals that have been lost forever during the relatively recent geological past. Each entry provides a concise discussion of the history of the animalhow and where it lived, and how it became extinctas well as the scientific discovery and analysis of the creature. In addition, this work examines what led to extinctionfrom the role of cyclical swings in the Earth's climate to the spread of humans and their activities. Many scientists believe that we are in the middle of a mass extinction right now, caused by the human undermining of the earth's complex systems that support life. Understanding what caused the extinction of animals in the past may help us understand and prevent the extinction of species in the future. Extinct Animals examines the biology and history of some of the most interesting creatures that have ever lived, including: The American Terror Bird, which probably became extinct over 1 million years ago, who were massive predators, some of which were almost 10 feet tall; the Rocky Mountain Locust, last seen in 1902, formed the most immense animal aggregations ever known, with swarms estimated to include over 10 trillion insects; the Giant Ground Sloth, which was as large as an elephant; and the Neandertals, the first Europeans, which co-existed with prehistoric Homo sapiens. Extinct Animals includes illustrationsmany created for the workthat help the reader visualize the extinct creature, and each entry concludes with a list of resources for those who wish to do further research.

Reviews

The prose is exceptionally well crafted, always including interesting facts or stories about the departed species. * ARBAonline *
Extinct Animals is a remarkable and highly recommended work of scholarship that is fully accessible to the non-specialist general reader, as well as academia. * Midwest Book Review - MBR Bookwatch *
. . . the prose is clear and even lively at times ('Fortunately for the pronghorn antelope, the American cheetah died out around 10,000 years ago'). The level of detail makes this a more rewarding resource for serious students of extinction's causeswhich are many and often hard to pin downthan Don Lessem's Dinosaurs to Dodos: An Encyclopedia of Extinct Animals (Scholastic, 1999). * School Library Journal *
These 65 species are fascinating, evocative, and important to know about as representative of the history of the earth. The information is interesting and well documented, and the author writes clearly and intelligently. * Booklist *
This book is recommended for public and college libraries and high schools where there is a strong interest in extinct species. * Catholic Library World *
Anyone with an interest in zoology or general users interested in animals of the past will enjoy this book; a good addition for public libraries. * Reference Reviews *

Author Bio

ROSS PIPER is an independent scholar. His life-long interest in natural history, especially animals, led to academia and he went on to gain a 1st class degree in Zoology from the University of Wales, Bangor and a PhD in entomology from the University of Leeds. Currently, he lives in Hertfordshire, England. This is his sixth book.