Carnivore Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution

✍ Scribed by John F. Eisenberg (auth.), John L. Gittleman (eds.)

• Publisher: Springer US
• Year: 1989
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 632
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Carnivores have always fascinated us, even though they make up only 10% of all mammalian genera and only about 2% of all mammalian biomass. In Greek mythology most of the gods adorned their robes and helmets with depictions of carnivores, and the great hero Hercules' most famous feat was killing the "invulnerable" lion with his bare hands. Part· of our fascination with carnivores stems from fright and intrigue, and sometimes even hatred because of our direct competition with them. Cases of "man-eating" lions, bears, and wolves, as well as carnivores' reputation as killers of livestock and game, provoke communities and governrpents to adopt sweeping policies to exterminate them. Even President Theodore Roosevelt, proclaimer of a new wildlife protectionism, described the wolf as "the beast of waste and desolation. " The sheer presence and power of carnivores is daunt­ ing: they can move quickly yet silently through forests, attaining rapid bursts of speed when necessary; their massive muscles are aligned to deliver powerful attacks, their large canines and strong jaws rip open carcasses, and their scis­ sor-like carnassials slice meat. Partly because of our fear of these attributes, trophy hunting of carnivores has been, and to a certain extent still is, a sign of bravery and skill. Among some Alaskan Inuit, for example, a man is not eligible for marriage until he has killed a succession of animals of increasing size and dangerousness, culminating with the most menacing, the polar bear.

✦ Table of Contents

Front Matter....Pages i-xv
An Introduction to the Carnivora....Pages 1-9
Front Matter....Pages 11-13
Acoustic Communication by Fissiped Carnivores....Pages 14-56
The Role of Odor in the Social Lives of Carnivores....Pages 57-88
Behavioral Development of Terrestrial Carnivores....Pages 89-124
The Comparative Behavioral Ecology of Hyenas: The Importance of Diet and Food Dispersion....Pages 125-142
Intraspecific Variation in Canid Social Systems....Pages 143-163
The Mating Tactics and Spacing Patterns of Solitary Carnivores....Pages 164-182
Carnivore Group Living: Comparative Trends....Pages 183-207
Front Matter....Pages 209-211
The Feeding Ecology of Giant Pandas and Asiatic Black Bears in the Tangjiahe Reserve, China....Pages 212-241
Adaptations for Aquatic Living by Carnivores....Pages 242-282
Ecological Constraints on Predation by Large Felids....Pages 283-301
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Small Size to Weasels, Mustela Species....Pages 302-334
Basal Rate of Metabolism, Body Size, and Food Habits in the Order Carnivora....Pages 335-354
Patterns of Energy Output During Reproduction in Carnivores....Pages 355-378
Front Matter....Pages 379-381
Locomotor Adaptations by Carnivores....Pages 382-409
Carnivore Dental Adaptations and Diet: A Study of Trophic Diversity within Guilds....Pages 410-436
The Physiology and Evolution of Delayed Implantation in Carnivores....Pages 437-464
Molecular and Biochemical Evolution of the Carnivora....Pages 465-494
The Phylogeny of the Recent Carnivora....Pages 495-535
Fossil History of the Terrestrial Carnivora....Pages 536-568
Back Matter....Pages 569-620

✦ Subjects

Ecology; Science, general