LEADER 04171nam 2200637Ia 450 001 9910454838703321 005 20200520144314.0 010 $a0-674-04058-9 024 7 $a10.4159/9780674040588 035 $a(CKB)1000000000786746 035 $a(OCoLC)433413685 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebrary10318372 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000137081 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)11160113 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000137081 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10088450 035 $a(PQKB)11601286 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC3300382 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL3300382 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10318372 035 $a(OCoLC)923110939 035 $a(DE-B1597)574389 035 $a(DE-B1597)9780674040588 035 $a(EXLCZ)991000000000786746 100 $a20011106d2002 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aurcn||||||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 12$aA desert calling$b[electronic resource] $elife in a forbidding landscape /$fMichael A. Mares 210 $aCambridge, MA $cHarvard University Press$d2002 215 $a1 online resource (337 p.) 300 $aBibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph 311 $a0-674-00747-6 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references (p. [293]-306). 327 $tFrontmatter -- $tContents -- $tForeword -- $tPrologue -- $t1. The Search for Undiscovered Life -- $t2. The Immortal Animals -- $t3. Elfin Farmers and Cactophylic Carpenters -- $t4. Darkness and the Cave of the Jaguar -- $t5. The Winding Path to Field Biology -- $t6. The Desert at the Bottom of the World -- $t7. Different Actors, Different Scripts -- $t8. Desert in the Sky -- $t9. The Vampire and the Phantoms of All Hallows' Eve -- $t10. Land of the Shah -- $t11. Impenetrable Land of Thorns -- $t12. The Devil's Town -- $t13. In the Shadow of the Pyramids -- $t14. Naming the Anonymous -- $t15. From Howling Wolf Mice to Fairy Armadillos -- $t16. Aridity's Cornucopia -- $t17. Life in the Desert of Salt -- $t18. Land of Diamonds -- $tEpilogue -- $tAppendix. Scientific and Common Names of Species Mentioned in the Text, by Region and Major Category -- $tSelected Readings -- $tAcknowledgments -- $tIndex 330 $aFor most of us the word "desert" conjures up images of barren wasteland, vast, dry stretches inimical to life. But for a great array of creatures, perhaps even more plentiful than those who inhabit tropical rainforests, the desert is a haven and a home. Travel with Michael Mares into the deserts of Argentina, Iran, Egypt, and the American Southwest and you will encounter a rich and memorable variety of these small, tenacious animals, many of them first discovered by Mares in areas never before studied. Accompanying Mares on his forays into these hostile habitats, we observe the remarkable behavioral, physiological, and ecological adaptations that have allowed such little-known species of rodents, bats, and other small mammals to persist in an arid world. At the same time, we see firsthand the perils and pitfalls that await biologists who venture into the field to investigate new habitats, discover new species, and add to our knowledge of the diversity of life. Filled with the seductions and trials that such adventures entail, A Desert Calling affords an intimate understanding of the biologist's vocation. As he astonishes us with the range and variety of knowledge to be acquired through the determined investigation of little-known habitats, Mares opens a window on his own uncommon life, as well as on the uncommon life of the remote and mysterious corners of our planet. 606 $aMammals 606 $aDesert animals 606 $aBiology$xFieldwork 608 $aElectronic books. 615 0$aMammals. 615 0$aDesert animals. 615 0$aBiology$xFieldwork. 676 $a599.1754 686 $aWI 5150$2rvk 700 $aMares$b Michael A$01053874 702 $aGould$b Stephen Jay, $4ctb$4https://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/relators/ctb 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910454838703321 996 $aA desert calling$92486014 997 $aUNINA