Sperm Whales: Social Evolution in the Ocean - Rilegato

Whitehead, Hal

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0226895173 ISBN 13: 9780226895178

Casa editrice: Univ of Chicago Pr, 2003

Riassunto

Famed in story as "the great leviathans," sperm whales are truly creatures of extremes. Giants among all whales, they also have the largest brains of any creature on Earth. Males can reach a length of sixty-two feet and can weigh upwards of fifty tons.

With this book, Hal Whitehead gives us a clearer picture of the ecology and social life of sperm whales than we have ever had before. Based on almost two decades of field research, Whitehead describes their biology, behavior, and habitat; how they organize their societies; and how their complex lifestyles may have evolved in this unique environment. Among the many fascinating topics he explores is the crucial role that culture plays in the life of the sperm whale, and he traces the consequences of this argument for both evolution and conservation. Finally, drawing on these findings, Whitehead builds a general model of how the ocean environment influences social behavior and cultural evolution among mammals as well as other animals.

The definitive portrait of a provocative creature, Sperm Whales will interest animal behaviorists, conservationists, ecologists, and evolutionary biologists as well as marine mammalogists.

Su questo libro

L'autore:

Hal Whitehead is the Killam Professor in the Department of Biology at Dalhousie University in Canada. He is the author ofVoyage to the Whales and coeditor of Cetacean Societies: Field Studies of Dolphins and Whales, the latter published by the University of Chicago Press.

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Univ of Chicago Pr
• Data di pubblicazione: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0226895173
• ISBN 13: 9780226895178
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero di pagine: 431