"The best scholarly reference work available on dinosaurs. . . . The volume will serve as a vehicle for university level instruction, and as a foundation for future research on dinosaurs."--Dale A. Russell, author of "An Odyssey in Time: The Dinosaurs of North America When the "The Dinosauria "was first published more than a decade ago, it was hailed as "the best scholarly reference work available on dinosaurs" and "an historically unparalleled compendium of information." This second, fully revised edition continues in the same vein as the first but encompasses the recent spectacular discoveries that have continued to revolutionize the field. A state-of-the-science view of current world research, the volume includes comprehensive coverage of dinosaur systematics, reproduction, and life history strategies, biogeography, taphonomy, paleoecology, thermoregulation, and extinction. Its internationally renowned authors--forty-four specialists on the various members of the Dinosauria--contribute definitive descriptions and illustrations of these magnificent Mesozoic beasts. The first section of "The Dinosauria "begins with the origin of the great clade of these fascinating reptiles, followed by separate coverage of each major dinosaur taxon, including the Mesozoic radiation of birds. The second part of the volume navigates through broad areas of interest. Here we find comprehensive documentation of dinosaur distribution through time and space, discussion of the interface between geology and biology, and the paleoecological inferences that can be made through this link. This new edition will be the benchmark reference for everyone who needs authoritative information on dinosaurs.

This is a new and completely rewritten edition of the well-known text "Microfossils" (first published in 1980) covering all the major microfossil groups, with information on taxonomy, phylogeny, ecology and palaeoecology. particular attention is given to the uses of microfossils in environmental reconstruction and biostratigraphy numerous line and half-tone illustrations emphasis on practical applications of micropalaeontology only student-friendly micropaleontology text available

"Vertebrate Palaeontology "is a complete, up-to-date history of the evolution of vertebrates. The third edition of this popular text has been extensively revised to incorporate the latest research, including new material from North and South America, Australia, Europe, China, Africa and Russia.

""Mesozoic Birds is the first book to bring together world-renowned specialists on fossil birds and their importance to avian origins and, more importantly, it stresses a unified approach (cladistics) and presents the most anatomically detailed analyses available to date. No other study or collection of studies has ever done so much. How could the project not be welcomed by its audience of paleontologists, ornithologists, and evolutionary biologists!"--David Weishampel, editor of "The Dinosauria "This is the first comprehensive volume dedicated to the relationships and evolution of the birds that lived during the Age of Dinosaurs. Its wealth of information and its diversity of viewpoints will ensure that this indispensable volume is used and discussed for many years to come."--Kevin Padian, University of California, Berkeley Our knowledge of the origin and early evolution of birds has exploded in the past ten to fifteen years. In the 1990s alone, scientists became aware of approximately three times more species of early birds than were previously known, marking the first 85 million years of avian development as a period of remarkable species diversity. Assembling work by an international group of renowned scientists, "Mesozoic Birds: Above the Heads of Dinosaurs "is the most authoritative and up-to-date source on early avian evolution currently available. This unique resource provides a comprehensive examination of the known fossil record and is also an unparalleled guide to the fast-paced developments in current research. "Mesozoic Birds: Above the Heads of Dinosaurs "covers a wide range of topics, including discussions of avian origins, the fossil record of feathers and footprints, bone histology, and locomotor evolution. Controversial taxa such as "Protoavis, Caudipteryx, "and "Mononykus "receive special treatment. But the heart of the volume presents the anatomy, relationships, and paleobiology of the undisputed Mesozoic aviary. Some of the book''s most exciting features are the new definitive descriptions and illustrations of taxa that previously have received only brief notice, such as the alvarezsaurid "Shuvuuia; "the enantiornithines "Sinornis; Eoalulavis, Vorona, "and "Patagopteryx; "and

The story of the evolution of the vertebrates, the animals with backbones, is fascinating. There is currently an explosion of new research ideas in the field - the closest fossil relatives of the vertebrates, dramatic new fish specimens unlike anything now living, the adaptations required for the move on to land, the relationships of the early amphibians and reptiles, the origins and biology of the dinosaurs, the role of mass extinction in vertebrate evolution, new Mesozoic birds, the earliest mammals, ecology and mammalian diversification, the origins and evolution of human beings. This book presents a complete outline of the history of the vertebrates, based on the latest studies by palaeontologists around the world. The work is international in scope, and new material included here for the first time come from North and South America, Australia, Europe, China, Africa, and Russia. A key aim of the book is to show how vertebrate palaeontologists obtain their information. There is an illustrated account of how to dig up a dinosaur, and how to interpret the bones.In addition, detailed case studies are presented, which show how palaeontologists study taphonomy, exceptional preservation, form and function of bizarre animals, and reconstruct phylogeny from cladistic analyses of morphological and molecular data. The new edition is extensively revised, and there is a great deal of new material based on work in the 1990s. There is a new chapter on how to study fossil vertebrates. A further major change is that more emphasis has been given to the cladograms. They are set apart from the body of the text, and full lists of diagnostic characters are now given. The book is designed for palaeontology courses in biology and geology departments. It is also aimed at the enthusiast who wants to experience the real flavour of how leading palaeontologists design their research programmes and carry out multidisciplinary studies of ancient vertebrates. The book has a strong phylogenetic focus, and this makes it an up-to-date source of the latest broad-scale systematic data on vertebrate evolution.

This new edition of The Evolution and Extinction of the Dinosaurs is a unique, comprehensive treatment of this fascinating group of organisms. It is a detailed survey of dinosaur origins, their diversity, and their eventual extinction. The book can easily be used as a teaching textbook for a class, but it is also written as a series of readable, entertaining essays covering important and timely topics appealing to non-specialists and all dinosaur enthusiasts: birds as living dinosaurs, the new feathered dinosaurs from China, warm-bloodedness. Along the way, the reader learns about dinosaur functional morphology, physiology, and systematics using cladistic methodology - in short, how professional paleontologists and dinosaur experts go about their work, and why they find it so rewarding. The book is spectacularly illustrated by John Sibbick, a world-famous illustrator of dinosaurs, commissioned exclusively for this book.

Distant relatives of modern lobsters, horseshoe crabs, and spiders, trilobites swam the planets prehistoric seas for 300 million years, from the Lower Cambrian to the end of the Permian eras-and they did so very capably. Trilobite fossils have been unearthed on every continent, with more than 20,000 species identified by science. One of the most arresting animals of our pre-dinosaur world, trilobites are also favorites among the fossil collectors of today, their crystalline eyes often the catalyst for a lifetime of paleontological devotion. And there is no collector more devoted-or more venerated-than Riccardo Levi-Setti. With The Trilobite Book, a much anticipated follow-up to his classic Trilobites, Levi-Setti brings us a glorious and revealing guide to these surreal arthropods of ancient Earth. Featuring specimens from Bohemia to Newfoundland, California to the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, and Wales to the Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco, Levi-Settis magnificent book reanimates these butterflies of the seas in 235 astonishing full-color photographs. All original, Levi-Settis images serve as the jumping-off point for tales of his global quests in search of these highly sought-after fossils for discussions of their mineralogical origins, as revealed by their color and for unraveling the role of the now-extinct trilobites in our planetary history. Sure to enthrall paleontologists with its scientific insights and amateur enthusiasts with its beautiful and informative images, The Trilobite Book combines the best of science, technology, aesthetics, and personal adventure. It will inspire new collectors for eras to come.----------------Parientes relativos de las langostas modernas, los cangrejos ermitaños, y las arañas, los trilobites habitaron los mares prehistoricos hace 300 millones de años, desde el Cambrico Bajo al final del Permico. Los fosiles de trilobites se han hallado en todos los continentes, con mas de 20.000 especies identificadas para la ciencia. Uno de los animales mas notables de la era anterior a los dinosaurios, los trilobites se hallan entre los favoritos de los coleccionistas de fosiles de hoy dia. Y entre ellos, seguramente no hay mayor devoto que Riccardo Levi-Setti. Esta obra es una continuacion ya anticipada de su clasico Trilobites, donde Levi-Setti nos presenta una gloriosa guia visual a estos surralistas artropodos. Mostrando especimenes de Bohemia a Newfoundland, de California al Tucson Gem y Mineral Show, de Gales a las montañas del Anti-Atlas marroqui. A lo largo de sus paginas Levi-Setti reanima para nuestros dias esas mariposas del mar en 235 fotos a todos color. Las mismas serian los puntos de partida para las historias del autor donde cuenta sus busquedas globales a lo largo del planeta detras de los trilobites para discutir sus origenes mineralogicos, segun los colores que presentan y para desentrañar el papel que tuvieron estas especies hoy ya extinguidas.