Vietnam: A Natural History

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Yale University Press, 2008 M10 1 - 448 páginas

A milestone book that provides the first guide to Vietnam’s spectacular flora and fauna and the diverse natural areas in which they live

A country uncommonly rich in plants, animals, and natural habitats, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shelters a significant portion of the world’s biological diversity, including rare and unique organisms and an unusual mixture of tropical and temperate species. This book is the first comprehensive account of Vietnam’s natural history in English. Illustrated with maps, photographs, and thirty-five original watercolor illustrations, the book offers a complete tour of the country’s plants and animals along with a full discussion of the factors shaping their evolution and distribution.

Separate chapters focus on northern, central, and southern Vietnam, regions that encompass tropics, subtropics, mountains, lowlands, wetland and river regions, delta and coastal areas, and offshore islands. The authors provide detailed descriptions of key natural areas to visit, where a traveler might explore limestone caves or glimpse some of the country’s twenty-seven monkey and ape species and more than 850 bird species. The book also explores the long history of humans in the country, including the impact of the Vietnam-American War on plants and animals, and describes current efforts to conserve Vietnam’s complex, fragile, and widely threatened biodiversity.

 

Contenido

2 Humans and the Environment
23
3 Biogeography of Vietnam
45
4 Vietnams Living Environments
71
5 The Fauna of Vietnam
97
Termination of the Himalayas
157
From Wet Mountains to Dry Forests
211
Ascendancy of the Mekong
261
9 Threats to Vietnams Biodiversity
315
The Future of Vietnams Living World
349
Appendix 1 Ethnic groups and their distribution in Vietnam
379
Appendix 2 Endemic and restrictedrange mammals and birds in Vietnam
381
Appendix 3 New terrestrial vertebrates described from Vietnam 19922004
385
Appendix 4 New plant genera described from Vietnam 19922004
388
BIBLIOGRAPHY
389
INDEX
407
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Acerca del autor (2008)

Eleanor Jane Sterling is director and Martha Maud Hurley and Le Duc Minh are biodiversity scientists at the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, American Museum of Natural History. Joyce A. Powzyk is visiting assistant professor of biology at Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT.

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