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Describing
102 species of salamanders occurring in the southeastern United
States, ecologists Joe Mitchell and Whit Gibbons provide us with
the most comprehensive and authoritative, yet accessible and fun-to-read,
guide to these often secretive, always fascinating wonders of
nature.
Mitchell
and Gibbons enumerate the distinguishing characteristics of salamanders,
including how they are different from other amphibians and from
reptiles, especially lizards. Also discussed are distribution,
habitat, behavior and activity, reproduction, food and feeding,
predators and defense, conservation, and taxonomy. Accompanying
each account are photographs illustrating typical adults and variations
and distribution maps for the Southeast and the United States.
Given
that 17 percent of the worlds species of salamanders live
in the Southeast and the scientific and popular concern for the
worldwide decline in amphibian populations in general, Salamanders
of the Southeast will appeal to people of all ages and levels
of knowledge interested in natural history and conservation. The
guide will help foster the growing interest in salamanders as
well as cultivate a desire to protect and conserve these fascinating
amphibians and their habitats.
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