Fires of Life: Endothermy in Birds and Mammals
Barry Gordon Lovegrove, "Fires of Life: Endothermy in Birds and Mammals"
English | ISBN: 0300227167 | 2019 | 384 pages | PDF | 9 MB
English | ISBN: 0300227167 | 2019 | 384 pages | PDF | 9 MB
A groundbreaking argument on how endothermy—arguably the most important innovation in vertebrate evolution—developed in birds and mammals
“Vividly narrated and illustrated. . . . Provocative and fascinating for specialists and lay readers alike.”—Southeastern Naturalist
This pioneering work investigates why endothermy, or “warm-bloodedness,” evolved in birds and mammals, despite its enormous energetic costs. Arguing that single-cause hypotheses to explain the origins of endothermy have stalled research since the 1970s, Barry Gordon Lovegrove advances a novel conceptual framework that considers multiple potential causes and integrates data from the southern as well as the northern hemisphere. Drawing on paleontological data; research on extant species in places like the Karoo, Namaqualand, Madagascar, and Borneo; and novel physiological models, Lovegrove builds a compelling new explanation for the evolution of endothermy. Vividly narrated and illustrated, this book stages a groundbreaking argument that should prove provocative and fascinating for specialists and lay readers alike.