Taxonomic Classification Books

A Field Guide to Plants of Costa Rica

Margaret Gargiullo, Barbara Magnuson, Larry Kimball

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At the biological crossroads of the Americas, Costa Rica hosts one of the widest varieties of plants in the wold, with habitats ranging from tidal mangrove swamps, and lowland rainforests, to dry tropical evergreen and deciduous forests.
Field Guide to Plants of Costa Rica is a must-have reference guide for beginner and expert naturalists alike. It provides a thorough survey of more than 850 plant species, each entry accompanied by color photos and a concise yet detailed narrative description. Plants are conveniently grouped by the different types of vegetation: palms, tall trees, shrubs, woody vines, herbaceous vines, herbs, grasses and ferns. Along with 1400 color photographs, the guide also includes an illustrated glossary of plant parts, five maps of Costa Rica, and laminated covers for durability in the field. With so much readily accessible information, this book is essential for exploring Costa Rica's common and conspicuous flora from the plants growing along the roadside to the best natural parks.

100 Butterflies and Moths: Portraits from the Tropical Forests of Costa Rica

Jeffrey C. Miller, Daniel H. Janzen, Winifred Hallwachs

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Walking a forest trail in Costa Rica, a visitor might be struck by the sight of an iridescent blue morpho butterfly fluttering ahead in the filtered daylight, or an enormous silk moth, as magnificently patterned and subtly colored as a Persian carpet, only emerging to fly at night. Elsewhere, vivid yellow and orange sulphur butterflies flock to puddles to sip the concentrated minerals. Such is the dazzling variety of the butterflies and moths unique to this region.

Gathered by biologists Daniel Janzen and Winifred Hallwachs in the forests of northwestern Costa Rica, 100 tropical butterflies and moths represent the diversity in large-format photographs by Jeffrey Miller that document the dizzying variety of shapes, colors, and markings. The photographs are accompanied by species accounts and images of the corresponding caterpillar. The authors recount these insects' feats of mimicry and migration, lift the veil on their courtship, and show how the new technology of DNA barcoding is changing the picture of Lepidopteran biodiversity.

The authors also tell the success story of Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, where the long-term work of Janzen and Hallwachs, a team of caterpillar collectors, and the participation of neighboring farming communities has deepened understanding of Costa Rica's Lepidoptera and has brought about advances in restoration ecology of tropical habitats, biodiversity prospecting, biotechnology, and ecotourism development.

(20070531)

Flora of North America: North of Mexico Volume 23: Magnoliophyta: Commelinidae (in part): Cyperaceae (Flora of North America: North of Mexico)

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The first complete treatment of the sedges of North America in more than half a century, this volume tackles the notoriously difficult to identify Cyperaceae with illustrations of all species in the group, emphasizing its great ecological importance. With extensive information on the more than 460 species of Carex, this third volume out of five covering the monocots of North America also includes 96 species of Cyperus, 68 species of Rhynchospora, 66 species of Eleocharis, and the monotypic, North American endemic Cymophyllus.
The treatments--written and reviewed by experts--all contain identification keys, summaries of habitats and geographic ranges, distribution maps, pertinent synonymies, descriptions, chromosome numbers, and phenological information. Over 100 illustrations and 945 individual species distribution maps provide ecologists, applied biologists, and other readers with an authoritative account of the Cyperaceae.

Horticulture - Plant Names Explained: Botanical Terms and Their Meaning

William Stern

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Useful information, but horribly unorganized 3 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

This book has tons of useful information, but the info is all jumbled about, making it hard to find the information you need. The index is hardly comprehensive, making it impossible to look up a botanical name to find out what it means. This book is valuable, but you will waste time trying to find what you need.

Editorial Review:

Precise naming of plants is essential to be able to identify them accurately and most gardeners have at least some knowledge of botanical Latin. But a plant's full botanical name does much more than give it a unique label. The name can often tell you where the plant originated, who discovered it, what color it is, and much else besides. What's more, the name is recognizable, and can be used and understood anywhere in the world. So wherever you are you can identify specific plants.

Plant Names Explained is an essential and fascinating guide to the subject. What may seem at first a dry but necessary convention is revealed to be a way of opening up the intriguing world of plants and plantsmen. Based on William T Stearn's Botanical Latin, the classic work on the subject, Plant Names Explained is much more than an indispensable practical guide and superb reference book--it is an engrossing read. Published in partnership with Horticulture, America's most respected gardening magazine

Flora of North America: North of Mexico Volume 3: Magnoliophyta: Magnoliidae and Hamamelidae (Flora of North America: North of Mexico)

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Editorial Review:

Flora of North America, Volume 3, provides information on many of the most familiar wildflowers and trees in North America. Included are treatments of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae), with such plants as delphiniums and columbines, and the poppy family (Papveraceae). Most of the important broadleaf tree species are covered, including the oaks (Fagaceae), elms (Ulmaceae), birches (Betulaceae), walnuts (Juglandaceae), plane trees (Platanaceae), and magnolias (Magnoliaceae). Many striking families are covered, such as the dutchman's pipe family (Aristolochiaceae), and the aquatic families Nymphaeaceae (water lilies), and Nelumbonaceae (lotus). As with Volume 2, this unique reference provides identification keys, summaries of habitats and geographic ranges, distribution maps, pertinent synonymies, descriptions, chromosome numbers, phenological information, and other significant biological observations for each species. The treatments--written and reviewed by experts throughout the systematic botanical community--are based on original observations of herbarium specimens and, whenever possible, on living plants. These observations are supplemented by critical reviews of the literature. For anyone interested in the definitive account of North American plant life, this newest volume in the long-awaited Flora will be valued as an indispensable acquisition.

Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Dicotyledons (Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants)

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The Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants represents the first comprehensive taxonomic treatment of succulents in thirty years. It covers over 9000 taxa of all succulents except Cactaceae.
The volume on dicotyledonous families embraces succulents from 47 families and 161 genera, further 8 families are shortly mentioned. Thus, a total of over 2000 species and 500 infraspecific taxa are covered. The families Didiereaceae, Fouquieriaceae and Nolanaceae are treated in their entirety - Portulacaceae with nearly all species. Euphorbia, with some 700 species, is the largest genus described. Other frequently cultivated genera covered in this volume include: Othonna and Senecio (Asteraceae), Jatropha and Monadenium (Euphorbiaceae), Pelargonium (Geraniaceae), Adenia (Passifloraceae), Peperomia (Piperaceae), as well as Cissus and Cyphostemma (Vitaceae). The focus is on caudiciform succulents grown in cultivation.

Biology of the Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina)

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The name "snapping turtle" conjures up images of powerful, prehistoric-looking beasts that lurk in the dark waters of local swimming holes. Beyond its status as childhood legend, Chelydra serpentina is one of the most interesting reptiles of the New World. One of our largest turtles, this animal weighs up to thirty-five pounds, lays as many as one hundred eggs and can deliver a nasty bite. Due to its wide distribution, abundance, and large reproductive output, the snapping turtle has become one of the most extensively studied species of reptiles.

This volume synthesizes all that is known about the common snapping turtle to provide an up-to-date and comprehensive resource on the species' evolution, physiology, behavior, and life history. Anthony C. Steyermark, Michael S. Finkler, Ronald J. Brooks, and a team of experts detail the systematics, energetics, growth patterns, sex determination, and population genetics of snapping turtles and devote special attention to the fossil record of the snapping turtle family Chelydridae.

The first broad biological treatment of the common snapping turtle, this is the definitive reference for anyone working with or interested in this fascinating reptile.

Contributors: Ralph A. Ackerman, Iowa State University; Abdulaziz Y. A. AlKindi, Sultan Qaboos University; Barbara A. Bell, Drexel University; Ronald J. Brooks, University of Guelph; Justin D. Congdon, Savannah River Ecology Lab; Carl H. Ernst, George Mason University; Michael A. Ewert, Indiana University Bloomington; Michael S. Finkler, Indiana University Kokomo; Matthew K. Fujita, University of California, Davis; Eugene S. Gaffney, American Museum of Natural History; David A. Galbraith, Royal Botanical Gardens; Robert E. Gatten, Jr., University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Judith L. Greene, Savannah River Ecology Lab; J. Howard Hutchison, University of California, Berkeley; John B. Iverson, Earlham College; Fredric J. Janzen, Iowa State University; Jason J. Kolbe, Washington University; David B. Lott, Clarion University of Pennsylvania; Ibrahim Y. Mahmoud, Sultan Qaboos University; Don Moll, Southwest Missouri State University; Scott A. Reese, Kennesaw State University; Todd A. Rimkus, Marymount University; H. Bradley Shaffer, University of California Davis; James R. Spotila, Drexel University; David E. Starkey, University of Central Arkansas; Anthony C. Steyermark, University of St. Thomas; Gordon R. Ultsch, University of Alabama; Nigel H. West, University of Saskatchewan

The Evolution and Classification of Flowering Plants

Arthur Cronquist

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Flora of North America: North of Mexico Volume 2: Pteridophytes and Gymnosperms (Flora of North America: North of Mexico)

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In Volume 2, over 50 contributors exhaustively describe and classify the ferns, fern allies, and gymnosperms of North America. Covering over two dozen fern and half a dozen gymnosperm families, they survey fern species of both ecological and horticultural importance and review such gymnosperm taxa as the conifers--the dominant trees in many forests as well as important timber plants--and cycads, which display significant evolutionary features. In all, the volume assembles 509 species of ferns and fern allies and infraspecific taxa in 70 genera. The editors have revised nearly 80 of these taxa to reflect classification changes since publication of the last standard work on ferns in North America. The gymnosperm treatments encompass 118 species in 22 genera. Identification keys, summaries of habitats and geographic ranges, pertinent synonymies, descriptions, chromosome numbers, and all other significant details are provided. More than 600 distribution maps and 65 illustration plates appear throughout.

Latin Names Explained: A Guide to the Scientific Classification of Reptiles, Birds and Mammals

Arthur Frederick Gotch

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A Plethora of Information for Anyone in Love with Zoology 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful.

I first saw this book in my high school library about 2 years ago. As soon as I laid eyes on it, I knew that I had to get it. Now a sophomore in college, for as long as I can remember, Zoology for me was the most interesting thing to study. But there was always this obstacle of not being able to fully participate in the "-ology" of the "zoa," if you will, due to me not understanding most of the Latin language. One thing I will say about this book, is that not only does it remove this hinderance, but it also showed me how many english words have their roots in Latin, the most common ones in my opinion being dent=teeth, pod=foot and derm=skin. Anyway, I can go on forever, but I'll stop here. If you are interested in Animals, this book is definitely for you!!!

Editorial Review:

Author A. F. Gotch explains the many meanings behind the Latin names of birds, mammals, and reptiles. A general introduction makes plain the basic principles behind the taxonomy of the animal kingdom. Next, the text relates class-by-class and order-by-order the meanings and sources of hundreds of Latin animal names.