| View Larger Image | After the Dinosaurs: The Age of Mammals (Life of the Past) | Hardcoverby Donald R. Prothero (Author)
| List Price: | $39.95 | | Price: | $29.16 | | You Save: | $10.79 (27%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | Hardcover | | Publisher: | Indiana University Press | | Edition: | 1St Editionst Edition | | Page Count: | 384 Pages | | Publication Date: | June 22, 2006 | | Sales Rank: | 68,393th |
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FEATURES | - ISBN13: 9780253347336
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
Perhaps nudged over the evolutionary cliff by a giant boloid striking the earth, the incredible and fascinating group of animals called dinosaurs became extinct some 65 million years ago (except for their feathered descendants). In their place evolved an enormous variety of land creatures, especially the mammals, which in their way were every bit as remarkable as their Mesozoic cousins. The Age of Mammals, the Cenozoic Era, has never had its Jurassic Park, but it was an amazing time in earth’s history, populated by a wonderful assortment of bizarre animals. The rapid evolution of thousands of species of mammals brought forth gigantic hornless rhinos, sabertooth cats, mastodonts and mammoths, and many other creatures—including our own ancestors. Their story is part of a larger story of a world emerging from the greenhouse conditions of the Mesozoic, warming up dramatically about 55 million years ago, and then cooling rapidly so that 33 million years ago the glacial ice returned. The earth’s vegetation went through equally dramatic changes, from tropical jungles in Montana and forests at the poles, to grasslands and savannas across the entire world. Life in the sea also underwent striking evolution reflecting global climate change, including the emergence of such creatures as giant sharks, seals, sea lions, dolphins, and whales. After the Dinosaurs is a book for everyone who has an abiding fascination with the remarkable life of the past. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.5 based on 10 reviews)
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More than Extinction! by J.P.E.W. (Ohio)  5 Stars
October 11, 2009
This book is a wonderful adaptation of scientific research into a readable story of prehistory. It delves not only into the fossil record of animal and plant history, but also attempts to show the analysis of global climate changes over geologic time (when man could not have been an influence.) Establishing habitats for the lost animal kingdoms by using trace evidence in the fossil record, this volume is an invaluable compilation for the serious environmental studies scientist. It even tries to clarify what the causes of extinction were most likely to be at each landmark on the geologic timescale.
Not a simple prehistoric zoology. Some of the concepts are a little challenging to absorb and retain, but this book does not make unsubstantiated claims nor does it embrace pseudo-scientific notions.
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A Big Disappointment by M. Greene (Atlanta, GA USA)  2 Stars
March 10, 2009
This book claims to cover the evolution of mammals during the Cenozoic era. What it actually covers is changes in global climate over the past 65 million years. While that topic may be of interest to some, most purchasers of this book are probably looking for information about the larger mammals of the Cenozoic. There is precious little of that here.
Each chapter covers one period of the Cenozoic Era, beginning with an excruciatingly detailed description of the climate of the period and how it changed over time. If you enjoy reading long, loving descriptions of mollusks and sea urchins and how the climate affected them, you are in luck. If you're looking for descriptions of the larger mammals that populated the earth during the period, you will be disappointed. What you get is generally a list of ten or twelve of the more common mammals with virtually no description or discussion of their behavior. This could perhaps be forgiven if the illustrations were of high quality, but the artwork is a joke. None is original. Much of it consists of pencil sketches that could have been drawn by high school students. The rest is from various sources, some of which are more than fifty years old. The color plates were lifted from a 1950's issue of "Life" magazine.
If you're looking for a well-done book on Cenozoic mammals, get Agusti and Anton's "Mammoths, Sabertooths and Hominids. Anton's artwork is incomparable and the text is actually about Cenozoic mammals. Unfortunately, it only covers the mammals of Europe.
Having read the glowing reviews of this book by others, I can only conclude that they have not actually read the book or else they are friends and colleagues of the author who are trying to help him out.
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A great detailed look at evolution after the dinosaurs by S. Foley (Ireland)  4 Stars
November 17, 2008
Not the easiest read but definately worth the effort if you have an interest in this subject matter. Theres no doubt that books that collate the broad spectrum of the information of this nature are hard to come by. So for me its a welcome publication although i'd like to see an improvements in the graphic design if any later editions are to be published..... Well done to the author
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An ESSENTIAL book on the mammals evolution by Ana Rosa Gomez Cano (Mostoles, Spain) 5 Stars
November 11, 2008
An ESSENTIAL book on the mammals evolution, it's so interesting for a general introduction of an explanation of mammals evolution.
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Unleashing a great diversity by Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) 5 Stars
September 23, 2008
For life on the land, it was simply a resetting of the clock. A great rock arrived on Earth to precipitate - or complete - a massive extinction. Successfully dominating the planet for over 120 million years, the hordes of saurians were expunged. The sea-side plains and woodlands they had inhabited were now empty. Not entirely devoid of life, however, for sharp-eyed creatures who had been around as long as those dinosaurs peered out from hiding places, observing the emptiness. They quickly began to occupy it for themselves. In so doing, they founded an immense diversity of lineages, one of which ultimately led to ourselves.
Donald Prothero, who has contributed much to our knowledge of fossils, the scientific process and mammalian evolution, offers here a work of great scope. Tracking the changes in life over 65 million years is no small task, and he copes with the challenge well. In this work, he lists the forms of mammal life, some of the sea life along the shore and in the deep, and the environment shifts in general. Those environment shifts were great prompts to changes in life and he explains as much as is known about what caused the Earth to warm from the end of the Cretaceous through the Eocene when temperatures went into decline.
Although North America receives what seems an inordinate amount of attention, that is due to geophysical conditions here through the Cenozoic and to the rich fossil trove it has produced. That doesn't prevent the author from addressing the rest of the planet, which he does in extensive detail. The interaction of life between Europe, Asia and North America is nearly continuous during the period. Africa remained close, but detached, as was the case with South America for many millennia. Australia was increasingly isolated over time, while India was making a mad dash to link with Asia. All these geologic shifts had major repercussions on climate, as well as plant and animal life. It is those great interactions which form the underlying theme of this book. Climate change institutes other change, much of it severe and long-lasting. Prothero's message is clear, if subtly presented: human induced climate change is already underway, and we'd best prepare to learn to cope with the changes that will follow.
As with all Prothero's books, this one is richly illustrated. It presents informative photographs of working digs and museum specimens, artwork of skeletal reconstructions filled in with flesh and fur. There are explanatory diagrams showing the relationships of various fossil species and the significant changes occurring over time. There are some jarring images, such as the sabre-toothed cats, who at first glance seem unlikely to survive with the extended dentition they carried about. Yet, they persisted successfully for nearly two million years. Huge, flightless predatory birds inhabited South America instead of the sabre-toothed cats. Prothero's diagram [p. 225] of these creatures' size compared with a human, should give anybody watching a passing robin a bit of pause. Today those creatures are docile seed or insect eaters, but not long ago they would have been pleased to feast on you.
Finally, of course, Prothero must bring in the most ecologically successful species of them all. The hominids and their many precursor species in Africa. Throughout this segment, he explains how climate was a prompt for many of our accomplishments as a new species. He puts the rise of proto-humans in context with events and conditions over the rest of the planet. The Ice Ages is given detailed attention with what is known of the Neanderthal subspecies living through the early stages. In all this is an excellent book for anybody who cares to learn the background of our lineage and that of our mammalian cousins. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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