Colobine monkeys have a unique digestive system, analogous to that of ruminants, which allows them to exploit foliage as a food source. This gives them a niche in Old World forests where they are often the only abundant medium-sized arboreal folivorous mammal. From a possible Miocene origin, Colobine monkeys have radiated into a wide variety of forms inhabiting a range of tropical woodlands in Africa and Asia. Most of the extant species have been subject to long term field studies, but until this book, no synthesis of work on this group has been available. The central theme is that of adaptive radiation, showing how the special features of Colobine anatomy interacted with a range of ecosystems to produce the distinctive species of today. The book also discusses parallels with other mammalian groups.
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Preface; 1. What are the colobines? John Oates and Glyn Davies; 2. Evolutionary history of the colobines in a paleoenvironmental perspective Eric Delson; 3. The diversity of living colobines John Oates, Glyn Davies and Eric Delson; 4. The natural history of African colobines John Oates; 5. The natural history of Asian colobines Elizabeth Bennett and Glyn Davies; 6. Functional morphology of colobine teeth Peter Lucas and Mark Teaford; 7. Functional morphology of the gastro-intestinal tract David Chivers; 8. Digestive physiology Robin Kay and Glyn Davies; 9. Colobine food preferences and plant chemistry Peter Waterman and Karen Kool; 10. Colobine populations Glyn Davies; 11. Colobine monkey society Paul Newton and Robin Dunbar; 12. Conclusions: past, present and future John Oates and Glyn Davies; References; Index.
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"This well-integrated set of papers demonstrates how far we have travelled toward understanding the interactions among diet, anatomy, demographics and social behavior [in Colobines]." Science
Discusses diversity, ecology and evolution of Colobine monkeys.

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780521331531
Publisert
1994-11-24
Utgiver
Vendor
Cambridge University Press
Vekt
800 gr
Høyde
229 mm
Bredde
152 mm
Dybde
29 mm
Aldersnivå
P, 06
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
432